Game Changer
by Sekcoya
Summary: An AU where things happen... differently. Tokaku meets Namatame first, then finds a girl named Haru with a strange, dusty scent. Hitsugi meets Otoya on a train, and Haruki talks some sense into Isuke. All of these and more are the differences that throw our story out of whack, along with the biggest change of all- the black class rules themselves. Rating may change.
1. Chapter 1

**Hi! This is the first fanfiction I've published. It's an Akuma no Riddle AU where things happen... differently. Some characters will also be a little out of character, but hopefully not in a bad way. The point of it is to make the longer with more characterization, more interesting and intelligent assassination attempts, and more real relationship development rather than just "Tokaku and Haru with out of the blue ChitaHitsu and ships". Yes, there will be romance in this. I hope I'm up to the task! :O**

**We begin at episode one, when Tokaku has arrived at the school. Enjoy!**

**TOKAKU #1**

The Myoujou campus was enough to make Tokaku's eyes widen, which was a feat in and of itself. Students packed the massive complex of tall, futuristic buildings. Everything looked metallic and expensive and glinted in the midday sun. Tokaku shielded her eyes, annoyed.

As she made her way quickly down the concrete walkway to the highschool building, she saw several students clustered around what looked like a massive touchscreen map of the premises. Kaiba had told her this place was funded by the big dogs, but she hadn't realized how much money they would throw at one school.

She frowned and turned her eyes back toward the path in front of her, ignoring the laughing students who passed by unaware that anything strange was happening in their special academy.

"Stupid…"she mumbled to herself. "Even if they won't be involved, don't they have a right to know what's going on?"

"I agree."

Tokaku whirled around to face whoever had snuck up on her, her hand instinctively reaching into her sleeve. Her blue and black striped tie floated in the air for a minute before returning to its resting place.

"Who're you?" she demanded under her breath.

The girl now in front of her raised her hands in surprise. "Um… I'm Namatame Chitaru." Her expression was calm, but her eyes were locked on Tokaku's hand. "I noticed you were wearing a different uniform, so I assumed you were in the black class as well."

Eyes narrowed, Tokaku withdrew her hand but remained on her guard. The woman didn't smell too odd. "That would be a pretty big clue, wouldn't it?" She sighed and looked up at Namatame, who was maybe four inches taller than her with wild red hair and a boys' school uniform. Her blazer was black with yellow trim and completely unbuttoned. It would have to be, Tokaku thought, to accommodate her… assets.

"Azuma Tokaku," she said gruffly, not bothering to extend her hand for a handshake.

Neither did Namatame. Her expression darkened a little when she heard Tokaku's family name, but she was polite and said nothing about it. Tokaku was glad there would be someone like her in the class who didn't obsess over things like that.

When Tokaku didn't elaborate, Namatame pointed toward the high school building. "If we're both going to the same class, we may as well walk together."

Light glinted off Tokaku's ice blue eyes. "I don't want to get too friendly with any of you. With luck, this'll all be over soon."

"Once again, I agree." Namatame started walking toward the building. She looked back over her shoulder and gave Tokaku a quick smile. "But it can't be helped, can it?"

Unfortunately, Tokaku did need to walk along the same path to get to the building. Sighing, she jogged a little to catch up with Namatame, and the two of them set off again.

There was silence between them before Namatame decided to speak, much to Tokaku's chagrin. Really, she just wanted to get this overwith. Being overly personal would only make her mission more difficult, and as much as she hated Kaiba, she didn't want to incur his wrath.

"If it makes you feel better," Namatame said carefully, "I'm not here to kill the target."

"What?" Tokaku took her eyes off the smooth gray sidewalk. "Then why did you come here?"

Glancing around, Namatame lowered her voice. "I'm here to put my mentor's mind at rest. Someone here killed her daughter, and I've come to avenge her."

A classic tale of revenge. It was bound to go wrong somewhere, but Namatame looked so chivalrous that Tokaku almost believed she could pull it off. This fancy academy was already rubbing off on her.

"Sounds like a bad movie," she muttered. "Who's the assassin you're looking for?"

Namatame didn't meet Tokaku's eyes. "I don't know what she looks like, but you might know her as Angel Trumpet."

That name was familiar. If Tokaku recalled correctly, they were a group of assassins who specialized in poison from the angel trumpet flower. They were also incredibly secretive.

"If you don't know what she looks like," Tokaku asked, "how are you going to find her?"

The redhead's mouth twitched, and Tokaku took it as a bad sign. Hadn't that thought crossed her mind before? If she'd come all the way here without thinking it through even that far, she was already doomed to fail.

"I'll find her the way anyone would," Namatame replied calmly, tucking a stray hair behind her ear. "By looking for clues and getting all the information I can until I narrow down my suspects. I don't know what the rules of this competition are, but I'm sure there will be some less than honest dealings behind the scenes."

Couldn't argue with that. By this time they had reached the front of the high school building. Namatame pulled open the glass double door and held it for Tokaku, who grudgingly entered. "Thanks."

She got another perfect smile. "No problem." If Namatame's plan was to distract the other assassins with her princely aura, it was working. Luckily, Tokaku had never been weak to charm.

They climbed several flights of stairs and walked slowly down the hallway to their classroom, Tokaku scanning one side and Namatame checking the other. If they hadn't arrived first, someone might be waiting for them.

It was ironic. They were technically working as a team, even though they were supposed to be enemies. Tokaku wouldn't let herself be lured in by false friendship. If this girl made one wrong step, she would be ready.

But Namatame didn't, and they reached the classroom with no trouble. Was it just her, or were these hallways all a little dark? The bright light came in through the windows at an angle, lighting up the floor but leaving everything at eye level dark by comparison. It was the perfect spot for an attack.

"This is it," Namatame said, peeking into what would be their homeroom. "It looks like we're not the first ones here."

Tokaku poked her head under Namatame's, eager to see as well. The more she got to know about the others, the better.

In a desk at the front the room sat a single girl bathed in sunlight. Her bright magenta hair was in two pigtails on the sides of her head, and it shone brightly along with her eyes. She was looking over a sheet of paper and reading quietly. Tokaku realized it was the class roster.

"Number eleven, Hanabusa Sumireko-san."

If Namatame could hear her as well, she showed no signs of it. Both of them remained silent, as though this was important information they needed to hear.

"Number twelve, Banba Mahiru-san." The girl seemed happy and content, not at all like an assassin. And her scent… Tokaku couldn't place it. It was subtle, almost dusty, but… nice.

"Number thirteen, Ichinose Haru!" she said cheerily, setting down the paper. Tokaku noted the lack of an honorific. It was the girl's own name, then. It was also, she noticed, the only name not in alphabetical order on the list.

She stiffened up when she felt someone move behind her. It was just Namatame, and she relaxed. The tall girl entered the room with a smile. Apparently she'd heard all she wanted to hear.

The magenta-haired girl looked up with a start. "Oh, hi! You surprised me!" She giggled. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised that people are showing up to class."

"How long were you here by yourself?" Namatame asked, taking the seat next to her.

The girl Ichinose put her finger to her chin. "Maybe twenty minutes? I wanted to get here early, since I'm so excited. But I'm not the only one." She turned toward the back of the room, which was invisible from the doorway. "There's someone else back there. I feel bad because she won't talk to me."

Reluctantly, Tokaku entered the room as well. There was no point in standing outside all day.

"Hi," she said flatly. "I'm Azuma Tokaku. Don't address me as Tokaku."

Her cold demeanor seemed to frighten Ichinose a little, but she regained her composure and smiled brightly. "Hello! I'm Ichinose Haru. But just Haru is fine." She looked at over Namatame. "You haven't told us your name yet, right?"

The redhead leaned forward a little and introduced herself. "I'm Namatame Chitaru. It's nice to meet you."

"You too!" Ichinose replied. "May I call you Chitaru-san?"

Namatame seemed a little surprised at the familiarity. "Ah… sure, that's fine."

Ichinose bounced a little in her seat. "Great. And, um…" she glanced up at Tokaku, who hadn't taken a seat. "Tokaku…san?"

Part of her wanted to say no, but strangely there was another part that didn't. Tokaku shrugged, defeated by the girl's undying happiness. "Fine."

She got an interested look from Namatame, but the girl still said nothing. Tokaku had to admit, she was good at keeping her mouth shut when she wanted to.

Meanwhile, Ichinose was delighted. "Wow!" she laughed. "It's my first day and I already have two new friends. You came in at the same time, didn't you? Do you know each other?"

"No," Tokaku replied curtly. "We met on the way in, and none of us are friends."

The expression on Namatame's face was like a warning. "That's not nice to say, Azuma-san. We might not know each other that well, but we could still be friends."

This was obviously an act, but Tokaku couldn't help her own annoyance. She folded her arms. "For all you know, she could be-"

Namatame frowned and shook her head silently. Gritting her teeth, Tokaku shut her mouth. It was true that she didn't really believe Ichinose was angel trumpet. She did, however, believe that Ichinose was the target, and she didn't want to have to fight Namatame to get to her.

Wait… where had that idea even come from? Deferring to the target's side? Only an idiot would do that.

Ichinose clasped her hands together. "Jeez, don't fight already! Class will probably start soon."

Glancing up at the clock, Tokaku saw that she was right. There were only ten minutes till the bell.

"I need to use the restroom, actually," Namatame commented quickly. "I'll be back in a minute or so."

As soon as she'd said it, she was gone. Tokaku stared out the door after her. That had seemed like a lie. She thought she'd understood Namatame fairly well, but like all people, there was more to her than met the eye.

Now she was alone in the room with Ichinose and her scent, and it had only grown stronger since Namatame's exit. The sun was like a spotlight on the both of them, blocking out the rest of the world with its burning glare.

Turning toward Ichinose, she leaned against the side of one of the metal desks. "Why do you want to make friends so badly?"

"Eh?" Ichinose cried. "Isn't that what everyone wants to do in high school?" She leaned forward on her desk, and a sort of sadness washed over her face. "I haven't gone to regular school in a long time."

"Were you… sick?" Tokaku asked, watching her face change.

"You could say that." Ichinose tilted her head to meet Tokaku's bright blue eyes. "I'm surprised you care, Tokaku-san."

A gentle smile told her that Ichinose wasn't upset with her. For some reason that was a relief. _Damn it, what's wrong with me? _Tokaku yelled at herself. _I'm going to kill this girl, for God's sake. I can't act like I'm friends with her!_

Yet she found herself answering quietly. "So am I. But don't get used to it. We can't be friends, Ichinose."

The girl looked hurt when she said that, but undettered. "Why not?"

Answering that one was impossible, unless she wanted to give away the entire black class game. Then again, who said she couldn't? It wasn't as though the redhead could seek any refuge in a building full of assassins out for her blood.

"Because… I think you're different from the rest of us," Tokaku said slowly. "This isn't a class for making friends. You'll see what I mean in a few days."

Fear popped in Ichinose's eyes, then fizzled out like soda candy. "I guess I will," she laughed nervously. "Thanks for warning me, I guess."

Nodding stiffly, Tokaku sat down in the desk she'd been leaning on. For some reason she still felt like she hadn't done enough. Something in the back of her mind told her to keep talking to Ichinose. She tried to ignore it, and when it wouldn't shut up, she found herself absorbed in the girl's eyes once more.

"You smell nice," she said under her breath. It had slipped out in the midst of her other thoughts. Out of everything she had just witnessed, it was the one thing she could be sure of.

Ichinose's face settled into a warm but curious smile, and she leaned on her elbows. "You're a strange person, Tokaku-san." There was a hint of something in her voice, and her cheeks were just a little pink.

The two of them sat in silence until they heard loud footsteps at the door. Tokaku looked up and saw that it wasn't Namatame. This one was about as far as you could get from the princely redhead. She was a rude-looking girl with very long pink hair and confident orange eyes. Her school outfit, if it could even be called that, was a leather jacket that bared her midriff, a purple checkered scarf and miniskirt, and thigh-high leather boots. She didn't look classy enough to be in a bar, let alone at a school.

Everything about her said she was dangerous, and that included her smell. Rather than introducing herself or even acknowledging their existence, she sat down at the second desk away from Haru and laid her head on her arms.

All right, if she wanted to sleep, that was her choice. At least she wasn't pretending like the others. Tokaku didn't relish the idea of having to talk to the girl, but she knew she would at some point. Right now she was just angry at her for ruining that beautiful silence.

"Whatcha thinkin' about?"

A high-pitched voice that was not Ichinose's jolted her out of her thoughts. When she tried to find its source, she saw a short blonde girl wearing the Myoujou uniform perched on top of a desk.

"Hello~!" the girl laughed, kicking her legs back and forth. She was wearing very black tights that completely concealed her legs. Most tights would've shown some skin, but these didn't.

Tokaku wondered if this might be the girl Ichinose had said seen in the back of the room, but when she looked over her shoulder she still saw a mysterious girl seated in the final desk. This peppy blonde girl had somehow entered the room without her noticing, which should have been impossible.

"You gonna say anything?" the blonde hopped off the desk, her shoulder-length hair bouncing as she went. "By the way, I'm-" she made a V with her fingers "-Hashiri Nio! At your service!"

Tokaku couldn't help but wonder if this "Nio" was one of the regular students, but a single whiff dispelled that notion. She stank like a rotten sea.

"I wish everyone here would quit pretending," she answered angrily. "How can you all be so calm and happy?"

"Well, cuz it's high school!" Hashiri twirled around gracefully. "We all wanna have fun in highschool, right Haru?"

Addressing someone she'd just met with no honorifics! Who did this imp think she was, anyway? Ichinose herself looked uncomfortable, though more with Hashiri herself than with the name. "Yeah," she said. "I just want to make a lot of friends and have fun. And graduate, of course." Her face brightened. "Can't forget that!"

The word graduate felt like a knife in Tokaku's chest. "You're right," she replied. "That's what we all want, isn't it?"

The bell rang. Namatame returned a minute before, never having set foot in the bathroom.

Class started a little late that day. Their teacher Mizorogi-sensei burst in five minutes after the bell, apologizing profusely for being late. Aparently a staff meeting had run long.

"This is my first year teaching homeroom!" he said happily, looking out over his six students. "I'm Ataru Mizorogi. If you ever need help, just come to me! You can think of me as your onii-san."

The first girl to stand was the one who had walked in while Tokaku and Ichinose were waiting for class to start and gone to sleep. Needless to say, she looked much more awake now.

"I'll go first!" she said, one hand on her shapely hip. "I'm Inukai Isuke."

She put her fingers to her mouth and laughed. Her nails were lavender, and looked like they'd been done by a professional. "If you want me to do something, you're better off asking someone else." She smiled not-so-sweetly and sat back down, one leg over the other. Just looking at her was intimidating.

Hashiri leaned forward in her own seat wearing a goofy cat smile. "That's no good, right? You gotta savor the high school experience!"

"Excuse me?" Inukai tilted her head and smiled menacingly. "Take your damn turn, would you? Or do you want to die?"

"Ha ha!" the blonde didn't seem too phased by Inukai's murderous remarks. Instead she offered up her own sly grin and made the V over her eye again, like an idol would. "Woah, don't get mad!"

Mizorogi held up his hands. "Let's not fight, okay? We don't know each other yet, but I know we'll make friends soon enough!" This guy must have been related to Ichinose or something.

"Sorry, sensei." Fake apology was written all over Hashiri's wide, constantly-changing countenance. She stood and bowed. "I'm Hashiri Nio! Nice to meet you!"

Tokaku scooted out of her chair and stood, her short blue hair making waves around her face with the upward motion. "Azuma Tokaku," she stated, waiting for the reaction that always followed. "Call me by my surname only."

The pink haired girl looked over at her with a mixture of disgust and awe. "Did she say Azuma?"

From the desk to her left, Ichinose eyed Tokaku curiously. "What's so odd about her name? I think it sounds cool."

Normally Tokaku wouldn't have liked being defended by someone she just met, but Ichinose's remark had ended the whole conversation, so she let it slide. Her family name wasn't worth the praise, though. If anything, it was a curse.

Namatame was the next to stand, and her height did not go unnoticed by Inukai, who leaned over and whispered, "Seriously? She's not even wearing any heels." She received a neutral but slightly perturbed face for her comment.

"I'm Namatame Chitaru," the redhead said. As opposed to being kind or serious like she had been earlier, this Namatame was completely expressionless. "It's nice to meet all of you."

Since they seemed to be going in random order, Ichinose popped out of her seat and beamed like a child at an amusement park. "Hi! I'm Ichinose Haru! I'm looking forward to spending the year with all of you." She shoved her hands into her book bag and messed around for a moment before pulling out several charms. "I made friendship charms for everyone."

"That's wonderful, Ichinose," Mizorogi said with a nod of approval.

Ichinose walked around the room giving out her charms. When she came to Tokaku's desk, she smiled before depositing the object. Tokaku examined it thoroughly to make sure it wasn't mechanical, which of course it wasn't. It was just a pink plastic cat's head with beads coming off the end. And it had that same strange smell that Ichinose had.

From a few desks down she heard Inukai complaining about it. Did that girl ever shut up? Tokaku really, really hoped she wouldn't have too many dealings with her. Even if the life of an assassin didn't drive her crazy, being around Inukai and Hashiri definitely would.

They heard a tapping from the back of the room. The girl in the final desk had peeked up just a little, so that a sliver of her face was visible below her long, silver bangs. "I want one…" she whispered, extending a waifish hand beyond the boundary of her desk.

"I'm sorry!" Ichinose cried, rushing over. "I forgot you were sitting there. You could sit up at the front if you wanted."

Flinching at the noise, the silver-haired girl accepted the charm and held it to the chest of her white, black, and red seifuku. "Thank you." She put the charm down and made a few turning motions with her hands.

"Um…" Ichinose leaned over in concern. "What's that you're doing?"

The girl gave her a shy smile, revealing a scar that ran down the entire left side of her face. It was so prominent that Tokaku could see it from the front of the room. "I turned the lock," she said sweetly. She had gone from frightened to angelic in an instant, and it had been a terrifying transformation.

Without standing, she introduced herself. "My name is… Banba Mahiru." She bowed her head once more. "D-don't make me say it again."

There was no sound at all for a few seconds after she'd made her declaration. The atmosphere in the room had become uncertain. Tokaku frowned. This girl was possibly more dangerous than the other three, simply because she could create feelings in others.

Mizorogi cleared his throat. "Thanks, everyone," he said loudly, as though the volume could dispel the uncomfortable air. "We'll have some more students tomorrow, so today I'll just teach you the scientific method…"

Settling down on her elbows, Tokaku waited for class to be over so she could learn what she really needed to know.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two! Yay! This is where the story will really start to deviate from the original. The chapters vary a fair bit in length, by the way. It was hard to decide how I wanted everything to fit together.**

**HITSUGI #1**

Everyone crowded around the directory, pushing and squeezing to try and read the tiny print on the large route map. Pamphlets were available, but those had long since been taken by the pushier people. Hitsugi struggled to raise her head, only to have it shoved back down by an insistent girl in a navy seifuku. Why couldn't she have been tall?

At this point she wasn't sure if she'd ever get out of the mess of people. She tripped over someone's penny loafers and was about to fall flat on her face when she crashed into another girl's back instead.

"Ow, watch it!" the victim cried, turning abruptly and whipping the man next to her in the head with her long, high ponytail. She looked around in confusion before a small hand tugged on her striped brown skirt.

"Down here." Hitsugi looked up at her cutely. "Sorry about that, ma'am. I really need to get to school, but I can't read the map."

The taller girl laughed in a high-pitched voice. "What, elementary school? I can pick you up if you want. I might drop you, though."

The expression on her face told Hitsugi that the girl fully intended to drop her onto the hard pavement. She could giggle all she wanted, but the malice was visible in her grin, and the madness plain in her turquoise eyes. It was the kind of face a killer might wear.

"Hmm." Hitsugi put a finger to her chin. "Actually, I have a feeling we're going to the same place. Myoujou Academy?"

The tall girl blinked. "Whoa! Are you psychic?"

"Nope!" Hitsugi shook her head and grabbed the other girl's sleeve. She smiled like an innocent child. "I just know what the eyes of a bad person look like." Her own eyes glinted pale blue, and the raven-haired girl nodded in understanding.

"Gotcha!" she said, taking the girl by the hand and bouncing off toward bus number 16. "I think we'll have lots to talk about, then!"

Hitsugi spent most of the bus ride listening to the raven-haired girl mumble absentminedly to herself about who her dorm partner might be, whether Nakamura had seen her leave, how she hoped the target would be cute, and so on and so on. She switched topics and moods every thirty seconds, and the way she talked made Hitsugi wonder if she was a little crazier than the rest of them.

She tugged on the girl's sleeve again as they neared the next stop. "Excuse me," she said, "but can you tell me your name? Since we're going to be in the same class."

The girl's eyes widened. "My class? I thought you were just a relative or something!"

Hitsugi had gotten so used to being mistaken for a ten-year-old that she took it in stride. "I'm a first-year highschool student." She pressed her hands into the plastic seat and leaned over toward the other girl. "My name is Kirigaya Hitsugi."

"Jeez," the raven-haired girl laughed. "You're like a lolicon's dream. I'm Takechi Otoya."

That name was enough to make even Hitsugi falter. She would never forget the tingle of fear that had washed over her when she'd read that newspaper headline a year ago: "The 21st Century's 'Jack the Ripper'". Only those in the killing business knew who had committed those horrible murders.

Takechi noticed and grinned. "Heard of me, I take it?" She smiled and patted Hitsugi's head. "Yay, I'm famous!"

Her eyes darkened. "Actually, I'm too famous. That's half the reason why I came to Myoujou. I've got this old bastard on my trail, and if I can win this thing, I won't have to deal with him anymore." She played with one of Hitsugi's long blue pigtails. "I'm kinda surprised you aren't the target. I was looking forward to messing with you."

Infuriated by the way Takechi treated her, Hitsugi slapped the hand away. "I can assue you, I'm not the target. I'm about as far as you can get."

"Oh?" Takechi rested her chin on Hitsugi's shoulder. "Do tell."

She'd already said too much, but there was no taking it back now. Hitsugi lowered her voice to a whisper, which Takechi seemed to think was an invitation to move even closer. "I'm a well know killer myself," she said, smiling calmly. "I'm part of a group that specializes with poison. I was born into it, and I've become a prodigy of sorts. They call me Angel Trumpet."

If Takechi had ever heard that name before, she didn't show it. Hitsugi had expected that. Serial killers tended to be on the outer fringes of things. The assassins kept tabs on them, but not the other way around.

"Working with that kind of poison all the time stunts your growth," she continued, craning her neck to peer out the thick window. "That's why I look the way I do."

Takechi shrugged. "Well, I'm not complaining. You look cute the way you are." She followed Hitsugi's gaze out the window. "Hey, there it is! Holy cow, that's a big school!" Letting go of Hitsugi, she got up on her knees and pressed her hands to the grimy glass. "I can't wait to go in there!"

Hitsugi nodded in agreement. It was about time they arrived. Maybe she should have tried to catch the earlier train, but she had trouble getting up early. Or staying up late, for that matter.

"I'm so glad I caught this train," Takechi sighed, sitting back down normally. "I've been on and off trains since ten in the morning. I need to tease someone."

The little blue-haired girl glanced up at her wearily. "I'm guessing that's me, right?"

Takechi grinned. "Yep!" With one swift motion she had stolen Hitsugi's book bag from where it sat on her left.

"Hey!" Hitsugi cried angrily, reaching up to grab her stuff but being thwarted once again by her height. A few people turned to see what was going on. Some scoffed and turned away, others giggled at her.

She reached for the bag a few more times to no avail. The glee on Takechi's face grew until she looked positively derranged. "It's just a book bag," she said, dangling it ever higher above Hitsugi's small hands. "Not like you'll need it where we're going, right?" Laughter finally escaped her throat, and she pushed in the tabs on her bus window, letting it drop with a hiss. "Hmm, maybe I'll throw it out the window?"

Enough was enough. Hitsugi glowered at her before grabbing her skirt and pulling it down in front of the entire bus.

"Hey!" Takechi cried, blushing and letting go of the book bag, which Hitsugi caught and slid over her shoulder. Hitsugi wasn't a mean person, but she did believe in bad people getting what they deserved. Even herself.

She sat back down calmly and pressed her knees together, playing with the fabric of her blue dress. "Don't push me," Hitsugi said, wearing that same innocent smile she'd worn earlier. "Or I'll retaliate. By the way, you didn't need to freak out so much. You're wearing tights."

Takechi was busy getting over herself. "I know," she growled, crossing one leg over the other. "I just don't like having my clothes pulled off. Although…" Her grin slowly returned. "It was a nice move on your part. I didn't think you'd fight dirty."

"I'll do what I have to," Hitsugi replied, patting her book bag. "There are things more important than being politically correct."

Reaching into her own bag, Takechi pulled out a juice box. "I'll drink to that."

The bus came to a slow stop, and the two dismounted, ready for the most unexpected few months of their lives.

**In case anyone was worried, no, this fic will not have Otoya x Hitsugi in it. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three! Mostly just regular conversation and getting to know characters. Thank you so much for the reviews and follows! They give me so much confidence.  
**

**TOKAKU #2**

The sky was dark with the remnants of a pink and orange sunset. Small trees planted within elegant stone cylinders rustled in the light evening breeze, and the chatter of students filled the air around them. In the midst of this beauty, Tokaku and Ichinose were walking toward the cafeteria, their shoes scraping the smooth pavement like fingertips on paper.

"I hope the food here is good," Ichinose said with a spring in her step. "Since the school has lots of money, you'd think they'd have nice chefs, right?"

Tokaku nodded absentmindedly, absorbed in her own thoughts. Had the game already started? Not everyone had arrived yet, so they couldn't have started. Besides, a game like this had to have rules- it wasn't just going to be a free-for-all.

Or maybe it was. The fact that a game like this existed in the first place was pretty messed up, so anything was possible.

"Tokaku-san?" Ichinose waved a hand in front of her face. "Are you tired? You can go back to the dorm if you want." She squeezed her hands to her chest. "I can't believe I have a dorm partner now! Aren't you excited, Tokaku-san?"

The blue haired girl showed her "excitement" by opening the door to the cafeteria wordlessly. A wonderful aroma of all kinds of flavors bombarded them as they entered the building. They made their way up to the counter where a lady stood to dish out the food.

"What are you getting, Tokaku-san?" Ichinose already had a large bowl of rice and some chicken on her tray.

"Curry," Tokaku replied, dishing out a medium-sized serving and leaving to get a drink. She was beginning to think there would be no peace and quiet around here, ever.

Without any more ado, they arrived at an empty table and began eating. Tokaku spooned the mushy beef curry into her mouth and thought of her Aunt Mako. She remembered her aunt clearly, since she'd spent most of her early years with the woman. Aunt Mako had always made the best beef curry.

Then one day, she had just vanished.

Unpleasant images flooded Tokaku's mind. A forest being whipped about in the wind and a dark, foreboding shrine flashed before her eyes. She gritted her teeth and tried to focus on the flavor of the curry instead. She'd been having those visions for years, but they still gave her the chills.

"Haru! Tokaku!"

She flinched at the sound of her own name. "Hashiri," she growled. "I told you not to address me without honorifics."

Hashiri pulled out a chair beside Ichinose and sat, her ahoge bouncing up and down. Tokaku never understood how some people's hair worked. "It's fine, isn't it?" she asked, shrugging. "You can call me Nio. We're all pretty informal here." She grinned at Ichinose, who sort-of grinned back.

"No, it's not fine." Tokaku smiled angrily and set down her spoon full of curry. "If it were fine, I wouldn't have told you not to call me that."

"Suit yourself." Hashiri winked and took a bite of the melon bread she was holding. Swallowing, she turned to Ichinose. "How does it feel to be at a real boarding school, Haru?"

Putting down her own spoon, Ichinose leaned on her elbows with her fingers intertwined. "It's wonderful. I can't wait to meet everyone else and really start classes. Mizorogi-sensei is so nice, too. He said we might go on a field trip to the greenhouse in a few days!" Her eyes sparkled. "I bet there are all sorts of beautiful flowers in there."

"Definitely!" Hashiri nodded enthusiastically. "You won't believe this, but I heard one of the regular students say there was a waterpark too!"

"That's absurd," Tokaku sighed, exasperated. "Why would there be a waterpark at a school?" And why would there be a class full of murderers at a school? She couldn't say that one aloud, though. Ichinose gasped. "Really? With a slide and everything?"

"Yep, yep!" Hashiri had that weird cat smile again. Gossiping had excited her, apparently. "There's also an ice cream stand on the school grounds. We'll have to go to the pool sometime and get ice cream after." She eyed Tokaku invitingly. "Wanna come with us, Tokaku-_san_?" She emphasized the honorific.

Finishing her food, Tokaku pushed her tray to the side and folded her arms. "No thank you. There probably won't be timefor me to use the pool. I plan to get things done in class, if you catch my drift."

The blonde raised an eyebrow and smiled nastily. Her unnaturally shiny, sharp teeth looked like those of a monster. "Well, if you work quickly, you might have some free time on your hands. After you finish your work, you can still appreciate the school."

It hadn't occurred to Tokaku that people might remain at the school after killing the target. Not that she planned to do so. "We'll see," she replied coldly before taking a sip of water from her glass. "Though, I will get my work done no matter what."

"That's good!" Ichinose piped up, breaking into their thinly-veiled conversation. "You should definitely study hard and get your work done, Tokaku-san!"

"I agree."

Looking up, they all saw Namatame standing at the table. Her white dress shirt and black jacket set off her crimson hair as she sat down slowly. Ichinose and Hashiri stared for a few seconds longer than they probably meant to, and Tokaku was glad she'd had a chance to meet Namatame beforehand.

"Is that the way you start all of your conversations?" Tokaku asked. "I agree?"

Namatame chuckled, embarrassed. "I say that a lot, don't I? By the way, may I sit here? Sorry I forgot to ask."

"Go right ahead!" Hashiri's friendly demeanor was back again. "Chitaru-san, right?"

So people thought Namatame deserved more respect than her. Tokaku sighed. Maybe she _should_ be nicer to people. She just hated to lie about serious things.

The three of them ate and chatted a little, though it was Hashiri running the whole thing. The blonde lead every discussion and pressed every issue, whether it was dormitories or what they liked to do or what their favorite food was. She was milking them for every last drop of personal information that wouldn't be considered private.

Meanwhile, Tokaku observed their conversation and picked up all the little bits of info that Hashiri unearthed. Namatame didn't mention Angel Trumpet, and instead talked about how others assumed she was confident when she actually wasn't that good at talking to people. Ichinose talked about everything she wanted to do that year, and each cheerful resolution was like a twist of the knife in Tokaku's heart. She shouldn't have cared this much, but she did, and it ate away at her as she tried to fill in the holes with more curry.

Also, Tokaku was beginning to get the sense that Ichinose knew Hashiri from somewhere. It was something about the way she acted around her… the pink-haired girl's reactions to the blonde were too complicated for them to have just met.

Her eyes narrowed. Ichinose knew something about Hashiri that was making her uncomfortable.

She pondered that as she sat through the rest of the meal, willing her visions not to come back and hoping that she would gradually get used to Hashiri's god damn annoying voice.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four! The format is a little different this time, but I hope nobody minds that. If I've neglected to mention anything important or if there are any inconsistencies, please let me know! It's hard to incorporate the ideas of the old series with new ones but fun too. :) Once again, thanks so much for taking the time to read and review!**

**Isuke**

Having eaten dinner separately from the others, Isuke strode down the dormitory hallway. Those girls hadn't been her type of people. Hashiri was annoying, Ichinose was painfully naïve, Namatame was too pure, and Azuma was just an idiot. In her own attempts not to be friends with Ichinose, all she'd done was establish that she cared about her. That generally wasn't a good thing when you were trying to kill someone.

_And you're loud enough that me and the girl prince could hear your little conversation from outside the room_, she thought to herself. Hearing Azuma fumbling over Ichinose had not inspired her confidence in the blue-haired girl's abilities. But she couldn't let her guard down. Just because the girl had inhibitions about killing Ichinose didn't mean she'd show Isuke that kind of mercy if they ever came to blows, which she suspected would happen at some point.

_What am I thinking? I don't need mercy. I'm the best at everything I do, and a clueless idiot from a famous family is not going to get in my way_. Isuke already had a plan to eliminate Ichinose before anyone else got there.

She twisted the doorknob that would grant her access to her room. The sight that greeted her was a tall girl with wily red hair tied back in a sloppy ponytail bending over an open rolling suitcase. If this was to be her roommate, Isuke would hurry even more to get out of this school. What she really wanted was to go home, after all.

Before she could speak, the redhead turned and smiled at her, showing off some fangs. "Hey! Perfect timing. Do you have any makeup and nail polish remover? I left mine at home, and my nails are only half done."

Isuke clenched her fist and smiled back. "My _name_ is Inukai Isuke," she said, folding her arms and watching the redhead unpack her bag. "And I might have some. I use gel for my nails, though." She showed the redhead the back of her long, slender hand.

There was a flash of curly red hair. The pinkette found herself in an arm lock, with her back firmly pressed against the other girl's. It had happened so quickly she almost didn't believe it.

"Hmm." The redhead examined her hand thoughtfully. "Your nails are so thin. I don't agree with this." She ran a delicate finger across her knuckles. "They're pretty, though."

Isuke was still trying to process how she could have let this happen. "You're being pretty rude, aren't you?" she growled, not bothering to struggle against the girl's iron grip. "Call me Isuke-sama."

Most people wouldn't have tried to give an order in this situation. Isuke was not most people. The redhead craned her neck to look at her, then laughed. "Okay, sure. By the way, isn't Isuke kind of a weird name for a girl?"

Isuke pouted. "It's not weird, it's cool. I got it from my Mama, not that you would or should care."

"Who knows? I care about a lot of weird things." The girl grinned. "Now let me use your makeup remover, Isuke-sama."

She released Isuke, who immediately put distance between them. "I'm Sagae Haruki, by the way. You can call me Haruki, though."

"Who said I'd call you anything different?" Isuke found her makeup pouch in her suitcase and picked out her makeup remover. "Here."

"Thanks. Wow," Haruki looked at the container. "This is some nice stuff."

"Wouldn't want to go to sleep with makeup all over my face," Isuke replied, stirring around the contents of her bag. "You needed this too, right?" She tossed over the nail polish remover.

Haruki caught it in her other hand and put it on the nightstand. "Yeah." She took in Isuke's face, figure, and clothing. "You put a lot of time into your look."

Isuke plopped her bag at the foot of the untaken bed and sat on the edge to take off her boots. "It's something I enjoy doing. Don't most girls like to look good?" She glanced at Haruki's messy uniform, hair, and poofy purple bracelet that clashed with the rest of her outfit. "Although, you obviously don't."

"That wasn't very nice," Haruki said, looking amused but a little hurt. "My style's just different from yours. I've been asked out before. "Oh, really?" Isuke sighed, her feet very happy to be out of those shoes. "So have I."

"Jeez," Haruki laughed. "Isn't that kinda obvious? I bet people ask you out all the time. Guys and girls."

As true as that statement was, it wasn't. Isuke tended to get bored with people. It was only when her dads made her socialize that she ever ran into age peers who were interested in her, and her personality took care of the rest.

She got the other shoe off and set it by the side of the bed. Her toes breathed in the cool air. "I'm going to take my shower first," she declared, sliding off the sheets onto the carpeted floor and swiping her makeup remover. "I'll call you when I'm done, which won't be for a while, because I'm tired. There might not be any hot water left."

Haruki laid down on her stomach and watched her enter the bathroom. "No need." She grinned. "I'll be watching."

The possible implications behind that comment didn't hit until Isuke was inside the glass shower cubicle, where Haruki couldn't see her expression. Dammit, why was she getting worked up over some stupid girl who didn't even know how to color coordinate?

She removed her makeup and took her shower in less time than she'd planned, because she really just wanted to go to bed. Making someone else wait for her was too tiring. Once the steam had warmed her lungs and loosened her muscles, she rinsed off and moved the shower settings to zero.

Wrapping a towel around herself and her hair, she left the bathroom and saw Haruki standing right outside the door.

"Don't tell me you were actually watching." Isuke grinned incredulously.

Haruki held out her hand. "I was also using the nail polish remover. It works real well."

Shoving her out of the way, Isuke walked over to her bed. She waited until Haruki had entered the bathroom before taking off the towel and slipping her black nightgown over her head. Strangely, she felt exposed. Exposure wasn't something she usually felt, as evidenced by her clothing choices. It was not a nice sensation.

There was no time to think about it tonight. Being smart required a lot of sleep to fuel her mind. Yawning, Isuke sank into the fluffy pillow she'd brought from home. "I'll be back soon Mama," she mumbled, curling up. "I'll get it done tomorrow and come back soon…"

The bathroom door creaked open and Haruki peeked out. "Did you say tomorrow?"

Isuke blinked and resisted the urge to walk over and smack Haruki upside the head. "I didn't say anything," she replied sweetly. "Go take your shower."

Haruki stepped out of the bathroom in only her unbuttoned white dress shirt and red plaid skirt. "Don't feel too bad. I have pretty good ears." She made her way over to her own bed and flopped down on her stomach again. "Why in such a rush?"

The concern was a surprise. "Didn't you hear that part?"

"I heard you wanted to go back home, and I totally get that." Haruki rested her chin on her arms, the mass of red spilling over her back. "I just think it's a bad idea to attack before we've been given any rules. Like, half of the class is still missing."

"The rules can't be too different from what we already know, can they?" Isuke frowned. "The rest of the class should be here by tomorrow anyway, so that won't be a problem."

Haruki pointed at her. "But if you end up breaking one of the rules by accident, you probably won't get your wish, and the target'll already be dead. Nobody's gonna be happy then." She tilted her head, her yellow eyes flashing. "Me included."

Everything Haruki said was probably true. Isuke tsked and rolled over. "I just want this all to be over. I want to get my money and get out of this cespool."

"Money?" Haruki's face changed. "Your wish is money?"

"Of course!" Isuke smiled. "Everything I do is for money. Money can bring you happiness."

"Hmph." The redhead stretched out on her own bed. "I feel like I should argue with that, but I'm in this for money too. Though, it's not for me."

"Well, neither is mine, so there."

"Then who's it for? Mine's for my family."

That meant they actually had something in common. "Same," Isuke replied. "Though, they aren't poor like I'm assuming yours are."

Rather than being upset by her insensitive comment, Haruki nodded and laid her head on her pillow, staring at Isuke's baby pink hair that was the same color as her favorite shade of nail polish. "I'd do anything for my family," she said seriously. "Anything."

The change in the redhead's tone was surprising. Even more surprising was what came out of Isuke's mouth next.

"If you're letting other people trap you like that, you're just an idiot."

Haruki continued to stare at her through half-closed eyes. Somehow, even though her back was turned, Isuke could feel the girl's gaze. It was like lying in the sun on a cold day. She found herself wanting to roll over and face her again.

Nothing happened for a minute or so. Finally, she heard the rustle of Haruki's sheets and the dull thump of bare feet hitting the floor. She turned to see Haruki about to enter the shower.

Seeing her move, Haruki turned and winked. "See you in the morning, Isuke-sama."

Thank God she was gone. The sound of the shower lulled Isuke to sleep, where she dreamed of Mama's reading voice and Papa's cooking.

**Hitsugi**

"Ah…" Takechi yawned and staggered down the hallway. "That was delicious!" she sighed, hugging her stomach. "I'm gonna like this place. It's too bad I'll have to leave so soon…"

Hitsugi glanced up at her and folded her arms. "Didn't you just reveal that you'll be one of the first to attack?"

The raven-haired girl shrugged and stroked her hair. "Maybe. Or maybe I'm trying to trick you!" She lunged for Hitsugi's book bag, but the small girl was used to her antics and dodged.

"What's going on here?"

Hitsugi and Takechi turned to see a tall girl with red hair and a clipboard at the other end of the hall. She walked up to them with dignity and purpose, but Hitsugi could see nervousness in her crimson eyes.

"Oh, hey there!" Takechi bounced up to her and feigned ignorance. "I was just offering to carry her bag." Unlike this newcomer's eyes, there was no trace of fear in those turquoise orbs. "You're in the black class too, right?"

The redhead ignored the question and looked down at Hitsugi. "Is that true? It looked like she was bullying you."

There were two options available to Hitsugi; say she was being bullied, pretend to be weak, and make friends with this newcomer, or say everything was fine and be forever associated with Takechi. One answer was obviously the better one.

She made puppy-dog eyes and edged closer to the newcomer. "She's trying to take my bag," she said unhappily. "She did it on the train too. I think she likes to bully people."

Takechi blinked, and her mouth twitched downward. It was a visage of betrayal.

"You shouldn't bully people," the redhead said firmly. "This class is bad enough as it is without bullies."

The raven-haired girl stared down at Hitsugi, who met her eyes with child-like incomprehension. _I can be whoever I want to be here_, she thought, wondering if Takechi could read her mind at that moment. _I'll do what it takes to achieve my goal, and you aren't a part of that_.

Takechi backed off. "Ha ha," she growled in her high voice, standing up straighter. "Okay. I get it. Actually, this is kinda funny." She smiled menacingly, baring her gleaming white teeth. "Good luck, Hitsugi-chan!"

When Takechi had disappeared around the corner, the newcomer let out a sigh and rubbed her forehead. "That was close…"

"What was close?" Hitsugi stayed close to her, even though Takechi had left. Something about her was comforting.

"I thought she was going to hit me!" Chitaru admitted, smiling a little. "Maybe it was just an act, but she was scary."

The admission of fear was something Hitsugi hadn't been expecting. She had sensed the redhead's discomfort, but hadn't expected her to be upfront about it.

A real smile spread across her face. Here was a kind, honest girl, the polar opposite of herself.

She held out her hand. "Thank you for helping me," she said. "I'm Kirigaya Hitsugi."

Chitaru's jaw dropped a little before she smiled back and took her hand gently. "My pleasure. I thought you were a relative of someone, but if you are Kirigaya Hitsugi, then you must be a member of the black class. I'm Namatame Chitaru." She pointed down the hall where she had been. "We're roommates."

Roommates. If there was anyone she'd feel safe around, it was this tall, unconfident redhead. "That's great," she replied, giving Chitaru's hand a squeeze. "Let's go see our room. Or do you need to eat dinner?"

"Me and the others ate dinner a while ago. They made me the class rep, so I've been going around the dorms checking everyone off on this clipboard." Chitaru lead her down the hall to their bedroom. "It's strange that we didn't see you in the café."

"I ate on the bus here."

"Oh, really? I was going to take the afternoon bus, but I decided to go in the morning instead."

"I think that was smart."

As they made their way down the hall, Hitsugi felt Chitaru's palm moisten. Could it be she really was shy?

Even as her hand betrayed her, Chitaru wore a placid expression. She shortened her strides so that Hitsugi could keep up with her, even though the small girl knew she could've gone much faster. Everything about the redhead labeled her as a courteous, romantic type- everything except for those nervous hands.

While Chitaru talked a little, Hitsugi slid one finger out of her grasp and felt the girl's palm. Rough, calloused skin greeted her soft fingertips. At least she knew Chitaru wasn't the target. Those callouses were from fighting with a hand-held melee weapon, possibly a sword.

A shiver ran through Chitaru's body. She stopped talking and looked down at Hitsugi. "Um… did you want to let go of my hand? Is that why you're poking me?"

Her embarrassed face was adorable. Hitsugi shook her head with more fervor than she'd planned. "No, that's not it. I just noticed your hands are a little scratchy."

Chitaru frowned. "I suppose you're right." She eyed Hitsugi sadly. "But yours aren't, are they?"

It was true that Hitsugi's hands were very smooth and just as childish as the rest of her. Working with poison traps and occasionally poison guns didn't leave much of a trace on your body besides the unfortunate growth stunting.

Sighing, Chitaru clasped her hand tightly and began walking a little faster. "Tell me, do you know anything about the black class?"

"Hmm?" Hitsugi didn't have to pretend to be confused this time. "Well… it's…"

Her stomach lurched as she realized what was happening. Just like Takechi, Chitaru thought _she_ might be the target, so she was testing her knowledge. That wasn't too surprising. But what it meant was that Hitsugi could pretend to be the target if she wanted to.

At first it seemed like a terrible idea, but the more Hitsugi thought about it, the more interesting it seemed. Pretending to be the target would mean she wouldn't have Chitaru as a competitor in the game. If she got found out, which was very likely, it wouldn't hurt her. If she didn't, she could have one less competitor for the real target. And while she couldn't be sure of Chitaru's motives, she was showing a lot of genuine concern for Hitsugi's well-being.

At any rate, it would be a whole lot more fun than just another job.

For the second time that night, Hitsugi chose to lie. "It's a class that gets made whenever there's overflow from the other classes, right?" She tilted her head. "Why, is there something I should know?"

The redhead swallowed and pulled open the door to their room. "No… actually, yes." She nudged Hitsugi through the door. "Yes, there is something you need to know."

**Otoya**

Otoya sauntered out of the dormitory building, wondering just what the little loli was planning. She'd made friends with a big but not particularly scary girl, and one with a chivalrous streak at that. Someone like that probably wouldn't be that good of an asset in a class of much nastier assassins.

She giggled. Myoujou was going to be so much fun! She wished she wouldn't have to leave as soon as she would, but the most important thing was to get her wish and make sure she'd never be bothered by detectives again. Then she'd be able to do whatever she wanted for the rest of her life.

At first she'd thought of scouting the dormitory halls for her classmates, but waiting for them at the door was easier. Cool evening breeze wafted by, giving her the chills. She just loved that feeling.

Two voices came from around the corner, chatting about something. One was soft and high, and the other was rough and low. Hearing them, Otoya smiled meanly and disappeared behind one of the columns holding up the roof above the entrance.

"…don't you think, Tokaku-san?" the high voice said as it got closer and closer.

"I guess," was the mumbled reply. Their shoes clacked on concrete as one of them reached for the door.

Otoya burst out of her hiding place and grabbed both of their mouths. They jerked back, flailing their arms out. One with pink hair tried to mash her hand between her teeth, but couldn't open wide enough. Grinning, Otoya moved her hand away and stroked her cheek. She liked girls with a good survival instinct. Made them more fun to kill.

She was so preoccupied that she almost didn't notice the knife about to slice her hand off, but she leapt back just in time.

"What the hell was that for?" the bluenette yelled, wiping her mouth roughly. "Who are you?"

"Wouldn't you like to know!" Otoya purred, putting a hand on the pinkette's shoulder. "But I'll tell you. I'm Takechi Otoya."

Unlike the loli, these two didn't seem to know her name. That was okay. In any case, she'd make sure they never forgot it.

She felt the blunette's ice cold eyes on her hand. "Get your hand off her," the girl growled, closing in on her. "You jump out and scare the bejesus out of us, and now you expect us to like you?"

There was a lot of "us" going on here. Otoya folded her arms and smiled. "Calm down, okay? Can't you take a joke?"

"Jokes are supposed to be _funny_." The bluenette glared at her up close. "Don't do anything like that again."

"Can't promise anything," Otoya shrugged.

Then the strangest thing happened. She noticed something weird in the air, kind of like dust. She inhaled, exhaled… and felt very calm.

"Hey, do you smell that?"

The other two girls exchanged glances. "Could it be the cafeteria?" the pinkette ventured, pointing toward the brightly lit building a block away. "They had some really delicious food! If you haven't eaten yet, you'd better hurry."

A silly attempt to make her go away. Otoya chuckled. "If you want to get rid of me that much, just tell me. No, this smell is different. It's dusty."

The blunette shot her another glare, but this one was slightly different than the others. _So she knows what I'm talking about_.

"Well…" the pinkette fished for something to say. "Oh! Um… I'm Ichinose Haru, by the way. And this is Azuma Tokaku-san." She offered a strained smile. "Please don't scare us like that again."

A minute ago, Otoya would've given the same response she'd given Azuma. Things seemed different now, though. She nodded succinctly. "All right, I won't."

"Good." Azuma pulled open the dormitory door. "Don't know why you couldn't have said that two seconds ago."

Otoya laughed. "Cuz your girlfriend's cuter than you, that's why!"

"Oh, she's not my girlfriend!" Ichinose cried a little louder than necessary. Her cheeks were round and red as tomatoes. "We only just met each other."

"Great!" Spinning on her heel, Otoya began walking away from them. "That makes things a lot easier, doesn't it?"

The pinkette stared after her for a second before being pulled into the building.

Otoya sauntered back down the walkway, her hands cold from the night air. No matter how far she walked, that dusty smell still clung to her. Maybe it's memory was so strong that she couldn't escape it, or maybe it was stuck in her nose.

All she knew was that she had relented to Ichinose, even when it would have been so easy to brush her off and tease her. When she pictured the girl's magenta hair and eyes, she could feel a sort of subconscious reveration. She was positive that smell had something to do with her sudden change in attitude.

Even worse, it wasn't hard to guess that Ichinose was the target.

A pain in her forehead jolted her out of her thoughts. She looked down at her feet, then up at the cafeteria door she had just run into. "Oops!" she cried, twisting around to see the dormitories that were now about a block away. It only now occurred to her that walking away from the two girls had meant walking away from her room.

"Oh well," she sighed, grinning into the darkness. "I've always had a bad sense of direction!"

**Haru**

The door to their room opened smoothly to reveal something out of a nice hotel. The beds were neatly made, there was a warm lamp on a nightstand, and they even had their own bathroom. Nio said there was a group bath on that floor as well. She looked forward to soaking in the warm water.

It was so different from the world she'd been raised in, though! Her family had lived in a modest cottage out in a rural area, a place where the sun beat down and the grass grew up to her waist. It was the safest place for them to be. As a result, Haru wasn't well acquainted with money, or with people for that matter.

Tokaku brushed by her and surveyed their dorm. Her blue hair stuck out a little in the back, probably because she didn't brush it as often as she should've. Her collar was crooked, her tie was off center, and her shirt was untucked. She wasn't refined like some of the other girls, but she wasn't laid-back either. Haru couldn't really put her in any category.

That was what she liked about her, though. Haru skipped into the room and twirled around happily. "Wow!" she cried, flopping down on one of the beds. "It's so big! And there's a bathroom, and a TV, and… oh, these beds are so soft!"

As she landed on the bed, the air blew her skirt up. She gasped and tried to cover her legs, but it was too late.

Tokaku, who had been uninterested a second ago, was now edging toward her. "Were those scars?"

This wasn't good. Haru laughed nervously, and pulled her skirt down as far as it would go. "It's nothing," she said, kneeling to further hide her upper thighs.

"No, it was something," Tokaku insisted, with her knee already on the bed. "Those looked like knife wounds. Show me."

She hadn't expected the quiet, slight girl to be so forceful. "I'd rather you didn't," she said quietly, holding out her hand. "I was in the hospital for a while, and I don't like showing them to people."

Now kneeling in front of her, Tokaku looked at her for a moment before sighing and lowering her head. "All right. I understand."

Haru smiled. "Thank you. Sometimes we have stuff we don't like to remember."

To her surprise, Tokaku reached out for her… and pulled her hand back. She looked conflicted, as though she were fighting within herself. About what?

"Are you all right, Tokaku-san?"

The blue-haired girl turned away from her and slid off the bed. "I'm fine. I was about to do something, but I stopped myself. That's all."

Haru blinked. "Um… what were you about to do?"

Tokaku looked back at her. "I was going to flip your skirt up."

"Eh?" Haru squeaked, blushing a little. "Do you want to see the scars that badly?"

"I'm just curious. You seem like a completely ordinary girl, and yet you have these massive scars on your legs."

Haru knew she was right, but how could she explain where she'd gotten them? It wasn't easy for her to talk about those things.

"Does it have anything to do with Hashiri?"

Haru blinked. "Um, no, not really. Why do you ask?"

Tokaku wouldn't answer. The two of them kept looking at each other, each waiting for the other to say something. No one did, and silence rushed in to fill the void. Haru's pink eyes were warm but guarded. Tokaku's eyes were still ice blue, but they weren't as cold as they had been earlier.

With one last look of disappointment, Tokaku shuffled over to her own bed. "I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. Would they really dump a person with absolutely no experience into a class like this?"

Fear clawed at Haru's stomach. Although the others seemed to think she was clueless, she did know that she was in a class full of assassins. What she didn't know was whether or not it had already started, or whether or not it would be safe to reveal her knowledge to Tokaku. The girl was definitely different from the others, but it could be a trick.

She swallowed. When she was little, her mother had always told her that whenever she met someone new, the first thing to do was to trust them, because if she didn't, she could lose out on something beautiful.

In other words, the joy of having a friend was worth the risk of death. She would much rather have a friend and die than live on without love.

Her hands shaking, she met Tokaku's eyes again. "Tokaku-san… I know about the black class. I know you're all after me."

Tokaku's eyes flashed. "What?" she cried in disbelief. "Then you were all friendly and you gave everyone charms, _knowing_ they were out for your life?"

Nodding, Haru smiled warmly at her. "I did. I don't know if anyone kept them, but…"

"How can you be so blind?" Tokaku yelled, anger seeping into her voice. "They want to see you dead! I want to see you dead!"

"Hmm…" Haru shrugged. "Some of them seemed nice. Nio-chan was telling me all about the school-"

"No, no!" Tokaku growled, grabbing her shoulder. "They're doing that to make you trust them. They'll make friends with you and then stab you in the back! I mean, think about that girl who jumped us outside! And you already have those… those!"

Haru put her own hand over Tokaku's. "They probably will. But as long as there's a chance that they won't, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt."

"Jesus Christ, Ichinose!" Throwing up her hands, Tokaku stepped back from her. "Do you _want _to die?"

There was a pause before Haru reached out and hugged her. "I won't die, Tokaku-san."

The blue haired girl shrank away from her touch. "How the hell do you know?"

"Because…" Haru replied, still smiling sadly. "I wasn't born to die." She looked up at Tokaku with unexpected conviction. "I was born to live."

A desk lamp shone on them, the only source of light in the room. It cast their shadows on the wall, larger than life and twice as foreboding. Haru closed her eyes and took a deep breath, remembering the words of her mother.

As long as there was light, there would be darkness. The darkness wasn't a bad thing. Letting one's fear of the dark prevent one from reaching the light… that was the true cause of despair.

_It will never claim me, _Haru vowed, staring into the blue eyes of Tokaku, the girl with no hope. _I won't let it._

"I will always smile."

Tokaku's brow screwed up. "I don't get it. I just don't get you, Ichinose."

She backed up, letting Haru's arms fall to her sides. "I'm going to take a shower. I'll try not to be too long. And please," she sighed, "don't get yourself killed before I'm even out of the shower."

Laughing a little, Haru laid down on her bed and watched her leave into the bathroom. "Let's not joke about that."

Her eyes wandered to their nightstand, which was bathed in light from the desk lamp. On Tokaku's side sat a blue cell phone… and a cell phone charm.

So Tokaku had kept it, even if she didn't plan to put it on her phone.

"Don't worry, everyone…" she whispered, taking her handmade trinket and squeezing it between her fingers. "I'll graduate for sure."

Once she graduated, she could finally have the normal life she'd dreamed of.

**It is so hard for me to write Isuke. I tried to take some lessons from "1000 Luxuries", because they do such a good job with her voice. Sorry for adding stuff to the end of this chapter.  
**


	5. Chapter 5

**Finally got chapter 5 up! Before reading this, go back to chapter 4. I put a new section at the end of it (Haru). I was going to put it in this chapter since that one was so long, but it didn't fit at the beginning and putting it at the end would make it out of chronological order. Please bear with me and enjoy! :)**

**Shiena**

The train ride had been so long that by the end of it she felt like the dead. Not the walking dead, because she had a feeling she'd fall over if she tried to stand up.

"Just one more train…" she muttered, stumbling out the door and making her way to the next train she needed to be on. In another hour she'd be at Myojou Academy. The sky stretched above her, dark and dangerous, as though it were foreshadowing the school year to come.

Shiena was smart enough to know that things wouldn't be that easy at the Academy. A class with one target and twelve assassins meant that two big strategies would come into play: eliminating the other assassins, or getting to the target first. She had also deduced that the target would be stronger than she looked. By digging around a few old Myojou files (the new ones were far better encrypted), she'd learned some things about the game rules, including the fact that you had to send a notice before you could attack.

Frankly, it all seemed very fishy, but she would have to bear with it. It wasn't every day one got offered a wish for anything they wanted. If she could just do this one job, she'd be able to take care of everyone she needed to and be warmly welcomed into her group. The group always came first.

At the moment though, she desperately needed something to eat. Being a distracted bookworm nerd like she was, she had only packed power bars for her journey, and those had either been eaten or melted beyond recognition. She absolutely refused to show up to the black class with chocolate on her face. Being familiar with drama, she knew that first appearances were incredibly important.

As the hours ticked by, that resolution seemed more and more futile. It was around eleven at night, so no one would get to see her until the next day. Whoever her roommate was would be asleep, right? Right?

Her stomach growled one last time, and she finally gave in to melty, mushy temptation. The wrapper came off halfway before sticking to the bar, but it was enough for her to gobble down a few bites. Gooey, chocolate-peanut goodness assaulted her tastebuds.

"Good evening."

Was she hearing things, or had someone just greeted her? She swallowed and licked her lips thoroughly before turning around.

A girl about her age with light blue hair to her chin and a headband smiled at her. She wore a strange uniform that was black with pink plaid sleeves, skirt, and tie. It looked kind of ugly, but Shiena wouldn't dare say so.

"Good evening," she returned, looking the girl up and down. "Did you have a question?"

"Oh," the girl smiled knowingly. "I was wondering if you were in the black class. We're on a train heading to Myojou Academy, but you and I are the only students, and we aren't wearing their uniform. Is there any other reason for a student to catch a train to a boarding school at night?"

Shiena was happy to meet someone so shrewd, but also worried to challenge her at the Academy. "You're right," she replied. "I'm Kenmochi Shiena. What's your name?"

She received an amused look. "Shutou Suzu. I notice you use _boku_."

Shiena folded her arms. "What's wrong with that? You use _washi_."

"Nothing," Shutou replied, shouldering her bag. "Should we sit together on the train? We might as well learn about each other."

"How come?" Shiena asked, eyeing her suspiciously. "Not to be rude, but we're going to be competing within a few days, possibly violently. And I'm not going to tell you anything that could be used against me."

Shutou chuckled. "Anything can be used against you, Kenmochi-san. But I'm not looking for your weaknesses, don't worry." She put her hand to her hip. "I just want to talk with someone. Unlike some who kill for a living, I'm still human."

"Shh!" Shiena hissed, checking to make sure no one had heard. "You might want to say that more quietly."

"Oh, they aren't listening." Shutou tapped her foot and gave it a wistful look. "You'll come to find that people are a lot more self-absorbed than you'd think. It's rare to find someone who's truly a good listener."

This girl was strange. Wise and experienced, but strange. There was something off about her, like she didn't quite belong here waiting for a train. Someone like her should have been elsewhere.

A screech and whish marked the arrival of their train. They boarded together, managing to find a seat before they were all taken. There were several more important stops on the route, so there were more people than expected. Shiena had been jostled a few times before sitting down in exhaustion.

"Ah…" she sighed, leaning back and wrapping up the power bar she'd been munching on. "I just want to get there so I can rest before tomorrow morning."

The blue-haired girl looked sympathetic. "If you want to sleep now, I can wake you up when we arrive."

Shiena didn't trust this girl for a moment, even though she had been all right so far. "Thanks, but I can stay awake. Didn't you want to talk with me?"

"True, true." Shutou yawned. "I do, but it's hard to form sentences this late at night, especially after a day of travel. Where are you coming from?"

"I'd rather not tell you about myself," Shiena answered nonchalantly, messing with one of her brown braids. "Anything I say can be used against me, right?"

"'Can', not 'will'. Why would I want to hurt you?"

Maybe she wasn't so wise. "Because if you got me out of the way, you'd have less competition for the target. Isn't that a good strategy?"

Shutou raised an eyebrow. "But in the time I waste eliminating you, someone else might slip off with the real prize." She closed her eyes and smoothed her bangs out of her face. "Besides, that's not the way I do things. I prefer to wait and test the water." A frown formed on her face. "Then again, I've never really been pressed for time."

Those cryptic comments were getting annoying. Shiena was beginning to fall asleep for real. "I have one job to do, and then I'll gladly leave," she mumbled, her red glasses slipping down over her nose. "I have to do it for my group. They're my friends…"

Bending over her, Shutou smiled again. "Do you mind if I ask what your group is called?"

Oh, what the heck. It didn't really matter, and she would be out cold in a few seconds anyway. Travel had never been so rough on her.

"Collective Dismissal…" Shiena breathed, her body slumping against Shutou's. "Sorry…"

"Don't worry about it." A gentle hand patted her head like one would their child's. "My specialty is explosives, by the way. What's yours?"

Her vision blurring, Shiena struggled to focus on the girl's face. She suddenly felt much younger. "I get info… hacking…" Her eyelids fluttered closed. "I like… drama… and…"

She was out like a light.

**Suzu**

Once she had delivered the soundly sleeping Shiena to her dorm (she'd been greeted at the door by an overly friendly girl with what looked like a volume of guro manga in her hand) Suzu had stumbled into her own room. She was glad she didn't need that much sleep anymore, though the brunette leaning on her shoulder had made her feel like dozing off too. She rolled it to work the kink out.

The room inside was pitch black except for a sea green illuminated clock face. It was 12:30. She tiptoed across the room, praying that her roommate wasn't the jumpy sort. Having a stranger sneak into one's room at night wouldn't be a good start to a friendship, even if it was unavoidable.

She decided to go straight to bed. She would have liked to shower and change out of her day clothes first, but it was already so late and it would have been loud. Before slipping under the covers, she decided to get a look at the girl in the bed opposite hers.

When she peered over the lumpy comforter, she saw a girl with black hair and pretty, melancholy eyes. Her hair was naturally wavy and splayed out in the back, but her bangs had been recently straightened to hang around her face. She did not appear to be having sweet dreams.

Suzu wondered what could make someone look so sad in their sleep. She herself dreamed about her lost loved ones, but hopefully this girl didn't have so unfortunate of a past. Then again, they were all assassins for one reason or another, and most people didn't choose that path willingly.

Then she noticed that the girl was clutching something tightly in her hands.

Should she try and see what it was? The answer was obviously no, but Suzu's curiosity got the better of her. It wouldn't hurt, would it? She could gently pry the girl's hands apart without waking her up. Making bombs required precision, and she was a master.

So she inched out from under her sheets and took ahold of her roommate's fingers, peeling them back one at a time. They were weathered, but not particularly rough. Probably not a melee fighter, then. While she worked, she checked the girl's face periodically for signs of alertness.

Her dexterity managed to uncover half of a necklace. A cross, if her sense of touch was to be trusted. It was metal, but the girl's grip had made it warm.

Satisfied, Suzu was about to fold the fingers back over the cross. Then the girl stirred.

Suzu froze up. Taking a deep breath, she backed away slowly. If she could be back in bed in two seconds, she might not be suspected of anything. She'd ask the girl about the necklace in the morning.

"Irena-senpai…"

The girl was talking. Eyes narrowed, Suzu lowered herself into bed and listened.

"No…" the girl whispered, tears forming in her eyes. "I didn't…"

Her face contorted into something Suzu had seen in the mirror far too many times. "I'm sorry," she whimpered. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Her eyes shot open. Suzu closed her own, pretending to be asleep, which she really wanted to be right now. Whatever this was about was more serious than she'd thought, and it was wrong for her to listen in on it.

She heard the rustle of covers as the girl sat up a little, and the clink of the beads on the necklace she pressed to her heart. Then she began to cry softly. It was awful to listen to in the dead of night, especially when Suzu understood all too well what the girl was feeling.

"Irena-senpai," she choked out, hugging her knees and curling up into a ball. "I… I…I'll get out of that place. I'll get it done and I'll leave this life behind. I promise…"

Suzu could hear her own grief in the girl's stifled sobs. Like herself, this girl carried a burden she would never share with anyone. Whether it was for the sake of pride or courtesy, she would shoulder her pain alone, bottling up her feelings and only releasing them where she thought no one could hear.

_I hear you_, she thought, desperately wanting to provide comfort for this unknown girl who sat crying in the next bed over. _You don't have to bear it on your own. The only one condemned to that fate… is me._

But she stayed silent. The girl continued to cry until she collapsed into a fretful sleep.

Suzu didn't sleep at all.

**Nio**

Nio yawned and relaxed into her bed. Out of all the black class members, she was the only one with her very own room. She'd known about it since the minute that year's black class had been approved, but she still felt cheated. This room was like a symbol of her loneliness.

She sat up and undid the buttons on her black and gold-trim blazer, preparing to take her shower. It was all right to be alone, because she didn't need anyone. She'd decided on that a long time ago.

A mirror greeted her when she entered the small bathroom. Her reflection met her eyes, and the two of them did not get along. There was her mess of blonde hair that wouldn't do anything except floof out at the bottom and make her head look misshapen. Then her weird, sharp teeth that had both ruined her life and saved her from a lot of other children when she was little. Finally, those deep red markings that had sealed the deal and branded her as a freak.

Her own red eyes gazed back at her as she stepped up to the smooth piece of glass. She could have smashed it if she'd wanted to. The chairwoman had a soft spot for her, so she probably wouldn't get detention.

But smashing the mirror wouldn't change anything. Instead she gave herself a wide, hideous, jagged-toothed smile.

"You're a real monster, Nio," she said softly. "Get used to it."

A beeping sounded from her red-backed tablet. She always kept it around, even in the shower, because the chairwoman had told her to.

She tapped the little phone button. "Hashiri Nio heeere!"

The slightly weathered face of Meichi Yuri appeared on the screen. A small smile tugged at the woman's lips. "Hello, Nio-san."

Nio laughed. The chairwoman had two expressions; smiling and bored. Everything else that happened on her face was some variation of that.

At least, that was all she let people see. Nio had to admire her ability to hide her true emotions, even if it made her a bit hard to understand at times.

"Did you have a message for me?" she asked, propping her tablet against the mirror so the chairwoman wouldn't have to talk to the ceiling. "Everything is going smoothly so far. The current students are Azuma, Ichinose, Inukai, Namatame, and Banba."

The chairwoman chuckled. "I already knew that, Nio-san. I've been watching their every move all day, and I will continue to do so."

Leave it to the chairwoman to be on top of everything. There were probably cameras and bugs hidden all over the place. If there was one thing Yuri hated, it was to be uninformed.

"I called to see how you were doing," the brunette continued, her figure bathed in the eerie green light of her control center. "Did you make a friend?"

Nio rested on her elbows. "I made some people talk to me, which was fun. And haven't you been watching me all day?"

"I can't see inside your brain." The chairwoman's smile grew gradually more genuine. "I know what you did. Tell me how you feel."

"How I feel?" Nio fished for the words. "Kind of excited, I guess. A whole class full of people like me isn't something you get very often." She grinned. "And then there's Haru."

The chairwoman's smile faded a little into seriousness. "Yes. There is certainly Haru."

"You said I can spread rumors, right?" Nio gripped the edge of the mirror.

"You may. Just don't reveal the actual truth." The chairwoman raised an eyebrow. "On a side note, did you realize that you don't have any clothes on?"

Nio remembered with a start that she'd been about to enter the shower. She bonked her head and laughed, straining to hold back the blood rushing to her face. "Oops. Hang on…"

Shaking her head, the chairwoman sat back in her very large executive chair. "That's fine, I was about to hang up anyway. But I expect a more detailed report later."

Of course she did. Nio sighed good-naturedly. "Are you going to be my therapist from now on, chairwoman?"

"No, I'm going to be what I've always been." The chairwoman waved. "I'll be your friend. Goodnight, Nio-san."

The screen went black, and the "call ended" icon appeared. Nio set down the tablet and made her way over to the glass shower cubicle, making sure not to glance in the mirror on her way there.

A friend, huh? She pressed her finger to the water controls and stepped into the shower. The more she thought about it, the more true it seemed. Yuri had looked out for her ever since they'd met on the Myojou Academy rooftop. She didn't show it outright, but Nio knew she always cared, and that she really did worry, even if her eyes were guarded.

And yet that word… friend… she wasn't sure she liked it. Something like that was frightening. It was a promise of commitment, one Nio had never been offered. It also sounded too breakable.

Perhaps the word "friend" just didn't sum up the way she felt about Yuri.

Hot water cascaded down over her small figure, burning away the fear and leaving her clean and refreshed. But when she stepped out of the shower, the mirror still stood before her, mocking her the way she'd been mocked all those years ago.

There were some things she could never wash off.

**I love Nio. I really want to try and flesh out her past in this fic, cuz I was so disappointed when they barely touched on it in the anime. Also, her powers! So awesome!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six! Sorry it took so long, I kept having to go over these scenes and rewrite little bits. If you have any suggestions for me, please let me know! I want to become a better writer. Thank you! :)**

**Haru**

When class started the next day, it was with more introductions. At the front of the classroom stood five girls, including the tall girl who had jumped out at them the night before. What was her name? Otoha?

Haru was sure it was something along those lines. She'd been too scared then to pay much attention. Whatever her name was, that girl was giving her a cute, mischievous smile. Instead of looking out over her classmates like most people would, her eyes were locked on Haru.

Seeing that Haru had noticed her, the girl gave her a little wave and an apologetic face. Haru knew it was a signal that she wanted to talk later.

Mizorogi clapped his hands. "Good morning, class! Today we have five new students! Go on and introduce yourselves."

The first girl was small and looked like an elementary schooler with blue hair in ponytails. "I'm Kirigaya Hitsugi," she said politely. "Pleased to meet you!

The second one was another cute girl with brown hair in braids that stuck out a little bit. She fixed her red glasses before speaking.

"I'm Kenmochi Shiena," she said, cheerful but composed. "Nice to meet you."

The tall girl with raven hair was next. "Hi! I'm Takechi Otoya." She winked at Haru. "Let's have fun!"

From the desk beside hers, Tokaku was gritting her teeth. Haru could already tell that those two would never get along. Frankly, Tokaku didn't seem to get along with anyone except Chitaru-san.

A girl with black hair, straight bangs and oval glasses that obscured her eyes stepped forward. "I am Kaminaga Kouko," she said flatly in a low voice. "From now on, I'll be the class rep." She looked at Namatame. "I'll be the dormitory rep too."

"Okay, thank you." Namatame handed over her clipboard.

Finally, a girl with chin-length light blue hair and a black and pink uniform introduced herself. "I'm Shutou Suzu. I guess you could say I enjoy being physically active." Her pronoun choice was strange. Haru had only ever heard old men use "washi".

Pleased, Mizorogi pointed them all to their seats and threw out his arms. "Almost all of the students are here now! I hope you're all as excited as I am to spend the year together."

Few people could get as excited about anything as sensei did, but Haru played along and clapped her hands. It would be a lie to say she wasn't excited at all. More people meant more chances at making friends.

Class went on like it had yesterday, with her, Chitaru-san, Hitsugi-chan, and a few of the new girls paying attention while Inukai-san, Haruki-san, and Nio-chan slept or listened to music. She noticed Chitaru and Hitsugi looking at each other a few times.

Then she looked over to the seat where Takechi-san sat. The girl was engrossed in doing something with her tablet, but it didn't seem like schoolwork from the expression she wore.

Haru remembered she had a messaging option on her own tablet. Sensei wasn't paying much attention, so she pressed the button and messaged Takechi to ask what she was so happy about.

She got a reply within seconds. "Nothing. Sorry bout yesterday, btw. Thought it'd be funny, but now I feel bad."

Haru wasn't sure how to interpret those words from the girl who had been so mean the night before. Mulling it over for a second or two, she typed "I forgive you" and sent it. Forgiveness was the door to renewal, after all.

There was a longer wait for the next message. Haru watched Takechi's expression from across the room. She seemed incredibly confused, then excited. It looked like she was typing and backspacing for a while before she finally sent her reply.

"Really? I'm so happy! :) When's ur birthday?"

What a weird question. "1/1"

"Cool! Mines the day before. Are u in rice or bread camp?"

"Haru loves rice!"

":O Same! We have so much in common!"

A smile spread across Haru's face at the girl's antics. She was pondering what to write next when Takechi sent another message.

"Can u show me around after class? This campus is so big!"

Her hand lingered above the tablet. Unlike the other comments, this one was serious. Going somewhere alone with Takechi would be the perfect chance for her to attack, but if she refused the request, she would hurt the girl's feelings and possibly provoke her.

She exhaled. Trust first.

She gave her one word answer. Even from where she was sitting, she could feel Takechi's face light up.

"Wow, yay! See ya Harucchi!"

The exhilaration of having buddies swirled around in Haru's brain. She would invite Tokaku along, maybe Chitaru and Hitsugi as well. She wasn't sure how she felt about the nickname Takechi had given her, but it was cute enough.

When she checked her inbox again there was another message, this time from Tokaku.

"Why are you talking with Takechi?"

Tokaku-san's powers of observation were impressive. Haru answered quickly. "She apologized and wants to be friends."

"She's lying."

"Maybe. :) Wanna come explore the campus with us?"

Having Tokaku around would make her feel a lot safer. Although the blue haired girl was also an assassin, Haru didn't feel any killing intent from her. It seemed to her that Tokaku didn't really have a purpose for being there at all.

Speaking of Tokaku, the blue haired girl had that conflicted look again. Finally, she responded.

"Sure. I'll ask Namatame later if she wants to come."

She got no more messages. Closing out the chat, she sighed and looked out the window. Even in a class full of killers, she'd made friends by the second day. The chairwoman had told her she would make friends quickly, but she hadn't expected it to go quite so fast.

Having people to hang out with was nice, but bittersweet. She would have to leave them forever soon enough. Not to mention depriving them all of their dreams.

She felt like laughing at herself. _Only I could feel sorry for the people trying to murder me_.

That's just the kind of person she was.

**Tokaku**

When Ichinose had asked her to walk around campus with the girl who had jumped out and gagged them the night before, Tokaku had hoped it was a joke, or at least a case of mistaken identity. When she left the classroom, however, she found the raven-haired maniac standing next to Ichinose in the hall.

_Why is she standing so close to her? _Tokaku frowned and walked over to them. They stopped chatting, and Ichinose waved.

"Hi, Tokaku-san! Did you remember to get the handout?"

She had, although she didn't plan to do it. "Yeah," Tokaku replied, shrugging.

Eyeing Takechi suspiciously, she found she had to look up to meet the girl's green eyes. Being looked down on was not a pleasant experience. With Namatame it was all right, but not with Takechi.

Takechi looked just as unhappy to see her. Rather than frowning, she smiled unkindly. "Hey, Tokaku! Sorry about yesterday. I thought it'd be a good joke, but I really wasn't thinking."

Tokaku folded her arms and gave her a disparaging look. "I hope you were trying to make that apology sound fake."

"Don't fight, okay?" Ichinose stood between them, determined not to let the two of them make contact. "I think we started out on the wrong foot yesterday. I've been talking with Otoya-san, and she's nice. Plus, she already promised she won't play tricks on us again."

"I believe her promise even less than I believed that apology," Tokaku growled.

"Your loss, then," Takechi replied, winking. "Harucchi was gonna show me around the school."

Not even her first name, but a nickname! After one day! Tokaku couldn't believe how familiar these people were. She was fine with being rude- she herself didn't refer to people too kindly. It simply wasn't right for Takechi to try and simulate a real friendship when she hadn't done anything to deserve it.

After Takechi spoke, Ichinose tugged on her sleeve lightly. "I invited Tokaku-san along too," she said. "She'll be with us."

The smile on Takechi's face disappeared. Tokaku felt like smiling herself to show how satisfied she was, but she'd been taught from a young age to suppress her emotions. That was the only way humans could kill each other, after all.

_…__is watching from that shrine._

No, no… She put a hand to her head and applied pressure. She wouldn't let the visions show up right now. There were more important things she needed to worry about.

"She's been here since yesterday," Takechi was saying. "Hasn't she already seen the campus?"

Ichinose beamed up at her. "Tokaku-san is my friend too," she replied, glancing back at Tokaku for approval. "Right?"

That wasn't right, but Tokaku knew that unless she laid some kind of claim on Ichinose, Takechi would try hurt her again.

She also found that she didn't want to hurt Ichinose's feelings.

"Right," she said gruffly. "I don't mind coming along."

Laughing harshly, Takechi moved behind Ichinose. "How kind of you! Lead the way, then."

At that moment Namatame came into the hallway with Kirigaya by her side. Tokaku wasn't sure when those two had met, but they had been practically glued together since that morning. They looked funny together, but they also complimented each other; a very tall prince and a very short princess.

"Hello," Namatame waved. "The math assignment today was hard, don't you think?"

"Tell me about it!" Takechi groaned, glomping Ichinose for no apparent reason. "I suck at math. How 'bout you, Harucchi?"

Ichinose didn't seem to object to Takechi's clinginess. "Hmm, I'm fine if I study. I'm not that good at it, though. Tokaku-san?"

Math and science were Tokaku's easiest subjects. She had a head for numbers and a good memory for retaining theorems and facts. Her tendency to observe everything around her helped too.

"I bet Tokaku's just awesome at math," Takechi answered for her. "You probably get top marks on all the exams, right?"

"I can answer for myself, thanks," Tokaku replied angrily. "Who cares what my exam scores are, anyway?"

Namatame placed an unobtrusive hand on her shoulder. "I'm sure she didn't mean to upset you, Azuma-san." She turned to Takechi. "You shouldn't jump to conclusions about people, Takechi-san."

"Right, sorry." Takechi gasped. "Wait, does that mean you're actually bad at math?"

Ignoring Takechi was the best thing Tokaku could do to calm herself down. "Are you going somewhere after class?" she asked Namatame. "We were all going to walk around campus. You and Kirigaya could join us."

"Um…" Namatame glanced down at Kirigaya, who reached up to hold her hand.

"We were going to explore campus just the two of us," the small girl said, smiling cutely up at Namatame. "But thanks for the offer."

"What's the problem with joining us?" Tokaku asked, confused. "If you're exploring campus anyway, you might as well." She would much rather have Namatame to chat with than Takechi. Ordinarily she might've talked to Ichinose, but for some reason she didn't feel like talking to her when the raven-haired girl was around.

She felt a hand slip around her arm and pull her back a little.

"Bye, guys!" Ichinose waved at Namatame and Kirigaya, who waved back and walked away in the opposite direction. Tokaku thought she caught Namatame giving them a thankful glance over her shoulder.

When they were gone, Tokaku lifted Ichinose's hand from her arm. "Why couldn't they just go with us?"

"They looked like they wanted to be alone," Ichinose said with a knowing smile. "I think Chitaru-san might like Hitsugi-chan a little."

It was true that Namatame had been flustered just then with Kirigaya, and their eyes sometimes met in the middle of class. Now that she thought about it, it wasn't hard to imagine Namatame thinking a girl was pretty and being all bashful about it.

"Are we ready to go?" Takechi grinned. She wore a triumphant "Looks like you're stuck with me!" face. Tokaku kind of wanted to punch her.

Jumping up, Ichinose set a brisk pace down the hallway. "Yeah! Nio-chan said there was a water park here, and I want to see if she was right!"

The three of them made their way down the hall and prepared to conquer the massive campus.

**NIO**

"What?"

"I know it's a surprise, but it can't be helped. The orientation meeting won't be held until day five of the black class."

Nio lay in bed in her dorm room, holding her tablet up over her face. This was unfortunate news. "Can you at least tell me why?"

On the screen, the chairwoman looked disappointed. "We're having some difficulties with the electricity, I'm afraid. The wires are getting old, and they aren't connected properly. You don't want the monitor to black out in the middle of your presentation, do you?"

No, she definitely didn't want that. Among other things, Nio was a bit of a perfectionist. If she had planned for things to be uncertain, no problem. But if something happened that she really wasn't prepared for, it made her uncomfortable.

Leaning back into the pillow, she let out the breath she'd been holding for the past ten seconds. "All right, I understand."

"You seem more disappointed than I thought you would be. I wasn't looking forward to giving you the news."

"It's fine, chairwoman," Nio replied, smiling a little. "I know there's nothing you can do about it. This'll give me longer to practice my speech, I guess."

The chairwoman nodded. "That's good." She paused. "I know it's not my place to intrude on your private life, Nio-san…"

Considering they were intruding on everyone else's private lives, Nio wasn't sure why it should matter. If it did matter, there was only one thing the chairwoman could be talking about.

"You're going to ask about my magic, right?"

"Yes," the chairwoman admitted. "I'm not entirely clear on how it works, but I wanted to make sure you're practicing every now and then."

Even when carrying out assassinations, Nio rarely used her magic. That was reserved for different issues, ones that required illusory skills and trickery. She was excellent at both.

Creating those illusions came at a price, however. It forced her to remember the things she was trying to forget. Things like the day her parents were murdered in front of her.

_By an Azuma._

"I practice every now and then," she said. "I memorized all the procedures when I was little, and most of it is just focusing and lying."

"Then I suppose you're practicing every day," the chairwoman chuckled. "Public speaking should be good for that."

Rolling onto her side, Nio braced the tablet against her other pillow. "People's brains are funny, y'know? I give them a suggestion, and they form a belief that meets their own expectations. It doesn't matter whether or not I'm telling the truth. Add in a little of that magic, and they'll start sensing things that aren't there."

The chairwoman clasped her hands together. "The whole art is truly fascinating. I've been studying it for a while, and it still eludes me. What does it take to be able to warp people's perceptions like that?"

"Well…" Nio would've said anyone could do it, but when she had tried to teach the chairwoman, it hadn't worked. "There are definitely some things you need to get in touch with the magical side of it. There are some materials, and then your totem. If you had those, I think you'd be a great shaman with all of that charisma."

"Then the tattoos really are necessary," the chairwoman sighed. "I had hoped they were just a mark of the Kuzunoha, but you're saying I would need them to create the illusions?"

"Yes." Nio was sad about it too. If the chairwoman could become a Kuzunoha, it would be like having family again. Unfortunately, she was too old for Nio to find her totem.

In the Kuzunoha clan, children weren't named until their totem animal, plant, or thing had been discovered. When the child showed an affinity for a certain thing, that thing would become their pathway to the realm of darkness. By mastering and nurturing the bit of evil inside of herself, Nio had learned to mould that darkness to her choosing.

The child was then, of course, tattooed with that totem. Nio had only been inked once, since she had stopped growing at an early age. Others had it done several times, according to her mother.

The chairwoman reached out toward the screen. "I'm sorry for bringing up such an uncomfortable subject. But with this black class, you should be able to make some new friends, right?"

Nio laughed a little. "Are you trying to pat my shoulder though a computer?"

Looking at her own hand like it was a foreign object, the chairwoman pulled it back to her lap. "Sorry. It's a bit of a reflex."

She and the brunette looked at each other for a little while. The chairwoman had always wanted to enter Nio's world. Whether it was simple interest or a desire to help her, Nio wasn't sure.

"Do you really think everything will work out?"

"Yes," the chairwoman replied, smiling. "I do. I trust that you'll do your job to the best of your ability, and you have many abilities, Nio-san."

The compliment sent warmth through Nio's cold hands. "Thanks," she said quietly. "You don't have to ask about the magic anymore, okay? I'm doing everything I can."

"I won't." the chairwoman said. Her brow was just a little tense. "Are you sure you're all right? You can come down to the control room if you want."

Nio wanted to say she'd be fine. She also wanted to go to the control room.

"I'll be there," she said, preparing to hang up. "Bye, chairwoman."

Before the chairwoman could respond, Nio tapped the red button and flopped onto her stomach. She hated the feeling that was rising in her gut, but there wasn't much she could do about it. She had been young at the time, but she still remembered everything.

Like the thud of bodies on a hardwood floor.

As she had every other time she felt like this, she forced a murderous smile back onto her face and bit her tongue. In the past there had been far too much blood. Now, however, the pain distracted her.

If everything went well during this black class game, she would have friends. People would respect and understand her, maybe even love her (though, that one was a stretch). Most importantly, she would be able to start over.

That was Nio's wish.

**Otoya**

"Look at all of these beautiful flowers!"

Haru ran around the greenhouse gleefully. Her round rosy cheeks framed her cute smile and made her face glow. Otoya wondered if she would look that beautiful crying.

Tokaku stood off to the side, keeping an eye on both of them. Otoya wished she would just butt out if she wasn't going to be any fun. Who could be serious and grumpy in such a wonderful place?

She breathed in the moist air and surveyed her surroundings. The greenhouse was thick with all kinds of plants, many of them exotic. There were bright pink and purple orchids, tall, waxy palms, ficcas, and plenty of others whose names she didn't know. All were in full bloom and bursting with color.

When Tokaku had her back turned, she reached into the waistband of her skirt and pulled out a pair of scissors. She always kept at least one pair concealed. It was an odd weapon choice, but since she hadn't been raised to kill like the others, it was the weapon she'd grown up with. Since then she'd learned to use saw blades, though the scissors were closest to her heart.

She sliced into the stem of an orchid with expert precision and caught the flower in her other hand. It was a pale orange-pink with soft petals.

"Hey, Harucchi!" She ran over to where the girl had her nose buried in some red roses.

Haru looked up. "Yes? Oh!"

Otoya had slipped the flower into her hair, making sure to caress her cheek on the way. Haru reddened at the touch.

"You're so cute, Harucchi!" She giggled and pulled away. "You could be a fairy."

Haru fingered the flower gently, stroking its petals. "Thanks! But you shouldn't cut the flowers, Takechi-san. They're more beautiful if you let them live."

"Beautiful things should end while they're still beautiful, right?" Otoya folded her arms and deftly pushed the scissors back into her waistband. "Otherwise they'll rot away."

Taking the flower from her own hair, Haru poked it above Otoya's ear. "Beauty doesn't have to be physical. Life itself is beautiful, and death is a part of life that comes naturally." She smiled warmly. "In that sense, everyone is beautiful, right?"

She left Otoya to ponder that as she ran over to Tokaku. The raven-haired girl tugged the flower out and placed it in the crook of a small tree. It wasn't her color.

Leaning back against the tree, she tilted her face toward the skylight and let the sun warm her. Haru really was beautiful. Since meeting her last night, Otoya had looked forward to seeing her again. Not only that, the dusty scent she'd encountered then had been following her, pulling at her like an unseen force. It made her want to be nice. Not fake-nice like she usually was, but real-nice.

Otoya was an impulsive person, and well aware of it. She was always falling for cute girls, usually within a few hours of meeting them. True beauty was something that couldn't be wasted or ignored. The difference with Haru was that she didn't feel the urge to tie her down and run a blade across her stomach.

She watched those magenta eyes open and close from afar, their long eyelashes fluttering like the wings of a butterfly. One of Otoya's favorite hobbies as a child was to catch butterflies.

It was fun to rip their wings off.

Upon Haru's urging, Tokaku had shuffled over toward Otoya, so that the three of them now stood in a group.

"You need to be more social, Tokaku-san." Haru was pushing her forward lightly by the shoulders. "Just try talking with Takechi-san."

"About that," Otoya interjected, kicking away from the tree. "Call me Otoya, 'kay?"

Haru blinked. "You mean Otoya-chan?"

"Nope, just Otoya. I don't like formalities." Otoya scooted closer. "But I like you, Harucchi!"

Tokaku glared at her. "That's enough," she said coldly. "Why do you have to get so close to her?"

Sliding her arms around Haru's neck, Otoya laughed. "Somebody's possessive. I thought you said you weren't together."

"We aren't!" Tokaku took a heavy step toward her, her fist raised. "You can't just pretend to like someone when-"

"Tokaku-san!"

Haru looked up at her. "Please."

Tokaku stared in disbelief. Otoya waited to see what would happen. If the need arose, she was always ready to fight.

But Tokaku relented to the pink-haired girl. Sighing, she lowered her arms and straightened her legs. "I'm worried about you, Ichinose. I really am."

Smiling sadly, Haru manually loosened Otoya's grip. "That means a lot to me, Tokaku-san."

_She and I aren't so different, _Otoya thought, noticing how Tokaku glanced away when Haru looked right at her. _You express them differently, but our feelings are the same._

She released Haru. "We'll see the greenhouse in a few days anyway," she said. "Let's go explore someplace else!"

"Sure." Haru started for the door. "Let's talk a bit, Tokaku-san. You've haven't chatted with us at all."

As they explored the rest of the campus, Tokaku gradually opened up to Haru, telling her a bit about the things she liked doing. Unsurprisingly, those things were exercising, math, and sometimes video games. Haru seemed interested in that, so Tokaku told her about fighting sims.

Otoya made frequent jokes, drawing laughs from Haru and eye rolls from Tokaku. There were many times when she wanted to tell Haru about herself as well, but it wouldn't be good if Haru knew what she liked to do in her spare time. She could imagine the horror on the girl's face as she bragged of all her exploits.

For the first time, she was ashamed of her work.

It got late soon enough. The sun dropped lower and lower behind the clouds until a faint orange glow lit up the sky. It was the same shade as the orchid she'd picked for Haru.

On the sidewalk in front of the dormitories, Haru turned to them and hugged them both. She didn't give any reason for it, but Otoya could feel how happy she was. Apparently walking around with other people was enough to bring her that kind of joy.

The joy of life?

She hugged Haru back, wishing it could last longer. Tokaku received the hug awkwardly, sort of patting Haru on the back and moving away. Haru didn't seem offended by her standoffishness.

"Bye, Otoya-chan!" Haru said loudly, waving at Otoya. "We're going to dinner now!"

It hurt to see Haru leaving with Her Royal Blandness. Groaning, Otoya decided to wander the campus a little more. She wasn't really hungry.

This felt quite different from the other times she had been drawn to a girl. All the other times, she had been driven by lust. If she wanted something, she took it, no questions asked. Hell, the greenhouse would've been a perfect place. She'd have waited until darkness fell, pinned down her prey amidst those flowers, and spent a wonderful night with her.

Right now her stomach felt like a rock tumbler. Even if she couldn't slice Haru, she wanted to see her again. The scent pervaded her senses, like it was trying to drive her crazier than she already was.

_I like Haru, but I don't want to kill her._

Those thoughts would torment her for the next three days.

**HITSUGI**

Hitsugi wondered if Chitaru would ever let go of her. When others were around, she could pretend to be the one who wanted to hold hands. When they were alone however, it became obvious that the redhead was most comforted by their closeness.

They had spoken several times since last their meeting, and each time Hitsugi had found something new to appreciate about Namatame Chitaru. She was quiet, courteous, kind… at the very least, she seemed that way. Being part of an organization meant that Hitsugi was used to dealing with liars. If Chitaru were lying about anything, she'd have figured it out.

That was the main reason why Hitsugi wanted to talk with her alone. Last night she had believed Hitsugi was clueless and explained the black class game to her. That was all well and good. The interesting part was that Chitaru didn't plan to kill the target.

_I want to know what her true purpose is, _Hitsugi thought. _She probably hasn't told anyone else, but she might tell me._

Despite her intentions, they had said little since leaving the classroom. They were currently sitting on a wooden bench beside one of the school's sidewalks. They were shaded by a grove of trees that allowed only a little sunlight through, making it pleasantly cool underneath.

Chitaru was gazing at their green leaves and admiring the way they swished back and forth in the breeze. She seemed so transfixed on the nature of her surroundings that Hitsugi wondered if she even noticed the people. There was a wistful look in her deep red eyes.

"Chitaru-san?" She tugged at the girl's sleeve. "I wanted to ask about some things."

Slowly returning to the world of humans, Chitaru smiled at her. "Sure. What did you want to know?"

Hitsugi was about to ask about Chitaru's intentions for the black class game, but her mouth had other ideas.

"What were you thinking about just now?"

"Just now?" Chitaru looked surprised. "Well… I was thinking about my mentor."

The way Chitaru softened when she said that indicated that her mentor was very important to her. Hitsugi smiled. "If there's something troubling you, you can tell me about it."

At first the redhead didn't say anything. Then she sighed. "My mentor was like a mother to me," she said, her eyes closing a little. "My parents died when I was pretty young. Our house got robbed, and they were killed in the struggle. I was out playing with some friends at the time, so I was spared. That's what the police told me. I don't remember much."

She swallowed. "My mentor was the one who adopted me. She's an older woman. Her daughter had already moved out, but she took me in anyway." A chuckle escaped her throat. "She said she missed having a kid around."

Her face was falling fast, so Hitsugi leaned on her arm to comfort her. The warm black fabric of Chitaru's jacket made a nice pillow, and she found herself feeling more content than she had in a while.

"Thank you," Chitaru said quietly. "I've spent most of my life with her, so when I think about how sad she is right now… especially without me…"

Now seemed like a good time to ask. "Why are you here, Chitaru-san?" Hitsugi closed her eyes. "If you aren't after the target and your mentor is sad without you, what do you need to do?"

"I don't want to get you mixed up in any of this," Chitaru replied, staring at the trees again. "It concerns me that someone like you wound up here in the first place. The same goes for Ichinose-san."

Time to play dumb. "Do you think the target is me?"

"I'm really not sure. We all thought it was Ichinose-san, but then you showed up."

Ichinose was a very nice girl, but Hitsugi was certain that she must have been the real target. In that case, she'd have to say something to draw suspicion to Ichinose.

"If she's the target, why did she go off with those assassins?" she asked innocently. "Isn't she afraid of them at all?"

"Huh." Chitaru frowned. "I hadn't thought of that. Azuma-san I can understand. She seems to soften a lot around Ichinose-san. Takechi-san, on the other hand…"

Right, Ichinose and Takechi had hit it off. Hitsugi was still stumped by that one, and she _knew_ that Ichinose had to be the target.

Her words had their desired effect. Chitaru nodded, as though deciding on something. "That's an interesting observation. I'll bring that up to Azuma-san later."

"So…" Hitsugi let go of her hand to hold onto her arm. "You didn't tell me why you're in the class. I'm stuck in it anyway, so I may as well know, right?"

Once again, Chitaru refused to answer. Glancing up from where she was, Hitsugi could see the light wind touseling her mane of crimson hair, making it undulate like an ocean wave. She watched it for a while as she waited for Chitaru to speak.

"I'm here to get revenge for my mentor's daughter," she finally said. "She was killed, and I'm going to kill the assassin who did it. I know they're here in the academy somewhere."

Revenge was always dangerous, especially when the avenger was too kind. It was really hard to imagine Chitaru killing anyone. Then again, if she really was an assassin, she must have killed before.

"Can you tell me who it is?" She pulled away from the girl's arm, determined. "I could help you find them, at least."

Shaking her head, Chitaru smiled weakly. "I'm sorry, but I can't let you get involved. This is going to get very dangerous very quickly, and that's not counting the rest of the class.

"That's one thing I'll always try to avoid," she continued, meeting Hitsugi's eyes. "I will never hurt innocent people."

The irony. "Then…" Hitsugi smiled. "Do you only kill bad people, Chitaru-san?"

The reply came quicker than expected. "Yes," Chitaru said firmly. "I make sure of it."

She lowered her head. "It might surprise you that someone like me is an assassin at all. I never would have considered it, if not for my mentor." Lifting her hand away from Hitsugi's she displayed her calluses. "I'm a swordfighter. At first she taught me to fight for sport, but one day I stumbled upon an old journal of hers and found out she'd been an assassin.

"I didn't talk to her for a little while after that. When we finally did talk again, she explained why she killed other people." Chitaru laid her hand over Hitsugi's once more. "I'll never forget those words."

Chitaru stepped into the middle of the sidewalk and pulled Hitsugi with her. They stood facing each other, Hitsugi in the dappled shade of the trees and Chitaru bathed in sunlight. Hitsugi had to remind herself to breathe.

"There will always be people in the world who hurt others," Chitaru said shakily. "As long as those people exist, there has to be someone willing to shoulder the burden of killing them. Someone who's willing to make the world safe for others to live in."

A smile returned to Chitaru's face, now illuminated like that of an angel.

"I would rather put myself through that pain than anyone else."

They didn't talk very much after that. They walked toward the dormitories hand in hand, ignoring the stares they got. The trees continued to rustle around them like hushed conversation.

Hitsugi couldn't think of another time where she'd been so affected by someone's words. Most speeches were silly or preachy or annoying, often a mix of those. Chitaru spoke with such conviction and sincerity.

_She's truly a good person, _Hitsugi thought, gazing up at Chitaru with wonder. _I didn't think they existed._

Hitsugi had grown up within an organization. The unwritten rule of Datura was "make a killing and make your name". She had done both of those things excellently, and that had earned her a nice life at the top of the food chain. It wasn't easy to become the ace of an assassin group.

When she had finally reached the top and mastered her art at such a young age, she'd been proud of herself. All of her hard work had paid off. She was the best at what she did, quite literally. It was such a great feeling that she thought maybe all of the killing had been worth it. Now that she heard Chitaru speak, she wondered if everything she had ever done was meaningless.

When they arrived at their dorm, Chitaru thanked her for listening and retreated inside. She had dredged up a lot of painful history, and needed to rest. Hitsugi also needed some time by herself, so she sauntered down the hall and toward the high school building.

_Why don't I hate her for making me feel this way?_

Though she tried to focus on sorting out her jumbled thoughts, all she could think of was Chitaru-san.

**MAHIRU**

Mahiru tiptoed through the dormitory halls, praying she wouldn't come across anyone before she got into her room. People were always hiding things. None of them could be trusted.

It was really too bad. She'd come to the academy at Shinya's request, the idea being that she'd meet people like herself and make some friends. So far that plan was not working. The girls here were really loud, scary, and unexpectedly socially savvy with one another. There weren't many opportunities for a shy, soft-spoken girl like herself to get a word in. Throw in the fact that she didn't really want to talk half the time, and it became clear that Mahiru was not in a nice situation.

Warm plastic pressed into her palm. She gazed down at the pink cellphone charm Ichinose had given her and felt a small smile on her lips. At least one good thing had come out of being at Myojou Academy. With this, she had an irreplaceable token of friendship.

_All I have to do is kill Ichinose-san and make it a true relic._

As soon as she thought that, she felt Shinya's disapproval. Her other personality had been acting up lately, and it made it really hard to think. Mahiru already had some trouble keeping things straight inside her head- having another person in there was annoying sometimes.

She couldn't really be upset at Shinya, though. The girl protected her so fiercely that Mahiru sometimes forget how much she had already done for her sake.

_"__Are you mad at me?" _A low, harsh voice spoke to her from within. She drooped her eyelids and let her eyes unfocus, allowing her to see the outline of Shinya's body in the dimly lit hallway before her.

"_No," _she thought back, trying to find her dorm number on one of the fancy wooden doors that lined the corridor. "_I was just thinking that I couldn't get mad at you."_

_ "__Well, uh, thanks." _The faint Shinya scratched her head. _"Y'know I don't like arguin' with ya over this kinda thing. I just think maybe… you've gone far enough in this direction. Maybe it's time ta find somethin' else."_

Typical of Shinya. _"I don't like arguing either," _Mahiru answered. _"But I… we… have to do this."_

_ "__Why?" _Shinya asked, folding her arms. _"Ya got the friendship thingie, right? Let's treasure that and get outta here!"_

"No!" she whispered, placing her hand on the wall. "I need it! The relic… if I don't end her life now, i-it'll be corrupted!"

Her stomach clenched up. When she lifted her head she saw not Shinya, but a man's face staring back at her out of the fancy wallpaper. He examined her with odd fascination, every line and contour of his countenance carving itself into and out of her memories. Those dark, dead eyes stared back into her own, devoid of emotion as he lifted his camera.

It took all she had not to throw up in the middle of the hallway.

_"__Mahiru!" _she heard faintly. _"What's wrong?"_

The sensation of falling came as a bit of a relief, because it meant she wouldn't have to see his face anymore. Blackness flooded her senses, a sweet relief. She had descended into the realm of darkness.

A pair of arms caught her and laid her down. _"Mahiru!" _Shinya cried, brushing her bangs away from her forehead. _"The hell was that for?"_

_ "__I saw him…" _Mahiru whispered, comforted by the feeling of Shinya's cool hand on her face. _"H-he was there in the hallway."_

Shinya sighed and lifted her into a sitting position. _"It'll be all right," _she said, frowning._ "Remember what I keep tellin' ya? We got 'im. He's never comin' back."_

_ "__But I saw him right there…"_

Two cold arms slid around Mahiru and held her tight.

_"__You should know by now that ya got a pretty powerful imagination," _Shinya mumbled with a grin. _"Don't let him get in the way of you havin' fun here. I wanted us to make some friends, and I know we can do it."_

Mahiru knew her other self was right. She tended to see things that weren't there, usually unpleasant things. Wherever there was light, there was constant fear of being stolen again.

_"__Okay," _she said, standing free of support. _"B-but you need to do your job too, or it'll be meaningless."_

_ "__Not yet." _Shinya stepped back from her. _"Make friends first."_

Why did she have to be like this? Mahiru grabbed her shoulders as roughly as her trembling hands could manage. _"Then at least promise me you'll do it!" _she cried, terror creeping up her body like frost. _"You have to make it a relic before it's too late!"_

Kindness was ephemeral, and would always lead to betrayal and corruption. Unless she ended Ichinose's life, the love inside the charm would soon be twisted into despair.

_"__You can't betray me…"_

There was pain in Shinya's face when Mahiru said that, but it disappeared at the sound of somebody's voice in the hallway. Opening her eyes, Mahiru found that she was still leaning against the wall. She'd have to finish that conversation later.

"Oy, Banba-san!"

New fear gripped her around the neck. She turned around slowly to find Sagae and Inukai behind her. Those two were some of the scarier looking girls in the class because they were taller and probably older.

Sagae smiled at her. "You okay? You look like you're getting sick or something."

"I-I'm all right," Mahiru stammered, wishing she wouldn't get so close. The redhead had something of a disregard for personal space.

An arm separated the two of them. "Back up a little, would you?" Inukai sighed, smiling. "You're going to make her wet herself."

Surprised, Sagae took a few steps toward the middle of the hall. "Sorry, sorry. I'm not used to having so much space." Her carefree laugh made Mahiru want to cover her ears. "Were you going back to your dorm, Banba-san? Isuke-sama and I were gonna check out the campus or something."

"Actually," Inukai interjected, taking the cuff of Sagae's sleeve, "I changed my mind. I'd rather rest in the dorm for a little while."

"Ah?" Sagae let herself be pulled a few feet. "But why?"

Inukai shrugged. "I don't want to walk in these shoes anymore. Besides, I'm sure we'll see the campus soon."

The excitement visibly drained out of Sagae's face. "Okay, I guess you're right. Exploring would've been fun, though."

"You could go see it by yourself," Inukai said. "It's not like you have to go wherever I do."

"Having someone to talk to is more fun!" Sagae insisted, following Inukai down the hall. She winked at Mahiru. "Sorry to bother you, Banba-san!"

When they were out of sight, Mahiru sighed and fidgeted to calm herself down. She was sort of thankful that Inukai had led Sagae away, and she had the odd suspicion that the pink-haired girl had done it on purpose.

_She's trying to make me feel thankful toward her. _Mahiru twisted the brass knob on her own door. Why would Inukai do that?

The door to her room opened, and a strange man stood in the entrance.

She realized it wasn't the man she remembered, but she jumped back nonetheless. He was adorned with brown working clothes and a brown hat that perched atop his head. He was also very big.

"Are you Hanabusa-sama's roommate?" he asked in a deep voice. "Sorry to be in your way. I was carrying some furniture in for the lady."

Mahiru peeked around him to see inside the room. Where there had been cold plastic tables and chairs, there now sat fancy mahogany desks and cushy, padded armchairs. It was as though two worlds had collided.

In the middle of it all stood a pretty girl with a pink and white school uniform, long blonde hair, and strikingly blue eyes. She was surveying her new living quarters like a queen might evaluate her royal bedroom. When she noticed Mahiru in the doorway, she smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, Banba-san. I am Hanabusa Sumireko, your roommate. I do hope you'll excuse Yoshida-san over there. I'm a bit frail, so I can't carry in large furniture by myself."

It would be pointless to ask why she needed such extravagant furniture in the first place. Someone who felt the need for so much stuff either wouldn't appreciate the question, or would explain it on her own within the minute.

"H-hi," Mahiru replied, staring at the floor as she shuffled by "Yoshida-san". "It's nice to meet you too."

Hanabusa lowered herself into a chair. "Come and sit down. You look tired."

Arguing with Shinya always made her tired. Mahiru obliged and took one of the normal chairs remaining in the room. She would've felt presumptuous using one of Hanabusa's nice ones.

There happened to be a table between them that was set with a teapot and some cups. She supposed that for wealthy people, making tea must be instinctive.

"You're the first member of the black class I've been able to meet," Hanabusa said. She sounded like a smooth and practiced speaker. "I hope we can be friends."

Mahiru wanted to run away from that notion, but Shinya was ever present, urging her onward. "W-why do you want to be friends?" she asked quietly, clasping her hands in her lap. "We'll all have to fight each other… and I don't like talking to people."

Picking up the teapot with both hands, Hanabusa expertly poured two cups of tea. Steam wafted from the tops of the cups as she blew on one and passed it to Mahiru.

"That's fine," she replied, smiling and lifting her own cup of tea. "I'm not very talkative when I don't need to be. People are very loud, wouldn't you agree?"

She actually did agree with that. "Yes." Mahiru lifted her head a little, her silver hair falling in front of her eyes to obscure her view of the blonde girl. Tentatively, she reached for the cup of tea in front of her. "People are too loud… and too cruel…"

The china burned her hand when she tried to pick it up. She gasped and dropped it, spraying several drops of tea on the tablecloth.

Normally there would have been a much bigger mess, but Hanabusa had leaned over the table to catch the falling cup with her bare hand before it could spill.

"H-how…" Mahiru stared at her. Hanabusa had reacted incredibly fast. Not only that, she was clutching a cup of burning hot tea in her bare hand.

Setting the tea on the table, Hanabusa yanked her hand away and shook it vigorously. "Goodness, that was a hot cup of tea! I can understand why you dropped it."

Something wasn't quite normal about Hanabusa, but Mahiru didn't dwell on it. None of the girls here were normal, and it made her feel more comfortable to know that her roommate was not as frail as she seemed.

Having recovered from the pain, Mahiru ignored the tea and focused on making eye contact with Hanabusa. "You have… very quick reflexes. And…" She blushed. "…very tough skin, Hanabusa-san."

Hanabusa's mouth hung open for a second. "I suppose I'll take that as a compliment," she laughed. Her laugh was much more pleasant than Sagae's. It was rounder and softer.

A minute or so passed where Mahiru fidgeted in her seat and Hanabusa took periodic sips of her tea. For the tea to be that hot, it must have been made recently. Hanabusa had probably made it while her worker Yoshida-san carried in furniture.

_It's a big pot of tea, _she thought, breathing in its calming aroma. _Did she plan on having someone to drink it with?_

_ "__She wants to be your friend, Mahiru. This's the perfect chance!"_

Shinya just didn't understand. Of course Mahiru would like friends. Chatting and sharing things would be fun.

Every time she thought of it though, fear would trickle down her back like icewater. The last time she had trusted a stranger… she had nearly been destroyed.

Her breath caught in her throat as she sat hunched over in her seat. Flashes of light exploded in front of her, and two knobby hands closed around her wrists.

She shrank back into the chair. Those memories were like a plague on her existence. She had gotten rid of him for a reason. He couldn't be allowed to torment her anymore, it wasn't fair!

_"__Mahiru," _Shinya growled. _"Calm down. She's not like him. And hey," _she cackled and made a muscle. _"If she does hurt you, I'll fuck her up real good."_

The words sent power surging through her veins. _"Y-you're right," _she thought back. _"I'll try."_

She raised herself up again and saw Hanabusa looking at her while sipping the last of her cup of tea. The girl had respected her silence, even though her eyes were full of concern.

Mahiru swallowed. Maybe… she should drink the tea. It would've cooled down since she'd handled it last. It smelled nice, like an herbal blend. She hadn't had good tea in a long time. So she slipped her finger into the teacup handle and lifted the china to her lips.

Warmth poured into her body like a ray of light, pooling in her stomach and spilling out of her fingers and toes. Several flavors mingled in her mouth before rising into her nose. She had no clue what she was tasting, but it felt very special.

The blonde leaned over the table. "Do you like the blend? I mixed it myself."

Mahiru placed the cup directly in front of her, a small smile forming on her uncertain features. "Yes… it's very nice."

Unexpectedly… nice.

**I wanted to fit a lot of metaphors into this story; sun/light vs. darkness, warm vs. cold, etc. I hope they aren't forced. Also, in case people didn't know, "The joy of life" was a reference to the meaning of the flower on Otoya's desk, the mountain lily. I wanted to incorporate the flowers somehow. **


	7. Chapter 7

**Hi! I'm trying to publish one chapter a week now. Thanks for reading, and enjoy. **

**HARUKI**

It was day three, and Haruki was beginning to wish someone would hurry up and explain the black class game so she could get things done. Another student named Hanabusa Sumireko had been introduced that morning along with about one truckload of furniture, but that had been the highlight of the day. At the moment, Mizorogi-chan was writing chemical formulas on the board.

School had never been her thing. For most of her eighteen years she had never even attended, save for a few years of elementary school before her family's needs had taken over her life. Because of that, her academic skills left something to be desired. It felt weird being around all these girls who were both younger and smarter than she was.

It was unfortunate, too. She was at one of the most prestigious, richest high schools in Japan, and she couldn't follow what the teacher was saying. At any rate, sleeping was far more rewarding.

While the smooth wood of the desk pressed into her cheek, she thought about her last few years. For the longest time things had been hopeless for her family of eleven. They had been getting by on whatever food they came across and taking odd jobs from anyone who didn't mind hiring underage workers. It was all they could do to try and pay their mom's hospital bills.

One day while job-hunting she had come across a strange looking man on a street corner. She could easily recall his floppy gray hat, stubble, and bad teeth. If she hadn't walked up to him that day, she never would've considered becoming an assassin. He was the one who had led her to her first clients.

She only ever did small jobs, but it paid off, literally. For the first time in ages, her family had had a table to sit and eat at together. With the little bit remaining, she had bought something for herself, which she rarely ever did; a bottle of baby pink manicure.

Gazing at her nails through the gap in her folded arms, she thought for the millionth time that the color didn't suit her.

At first she hadn't thought much about her work. Her family was the most important thing to her, and she would do whatever it took to keep them fed and safe. Then one day, her target was someone she knew.

From that point on it had been harder and harder for her to kill. Her family didn't know what she did to support them. They thought she was doing good, honest work when in reality she'd been ruining peoples' lives for reasons she didn't even know. It ate away at her until she hated herself with every fiber of her being.

News about the black class had reached her from the strange man whose name she'd never learned. He'd stuck around to inform her of job opportunities, and then of the ultimate opportunity. Winning the black class meant she could feed her family forever.

There was a catch, though. Explaining the newfound wealth to her family would mean telling them how she'd been supporting them for years. It would mean admitting what an awful person she'd become.

Her plan was already laid out in her head. She would create a trap for the target that no one could escape, herself included. She would die a killer, her family would live happily ever after, and no one would be the wiser.

"Sagae, don't sleep in class!"

Mizorogi-chan's voice intruded on her thoughts. Grumbling, she sat up and stretched her arms above her head. "Sorry, sensei."

Now that she was sitting up and pretending to listen, she could see Isuke sitting a ways away from her. She couldn't help but chuckle at the way the girl was draped over her desk like a tablecloth. She was out cold, but sensei was too scared to try and wake her up.

When Haruki had first seen her roommate, she'd expected her to be a lazy, ditzy girl who used her charms to get out of everything. To a certain extent she was, but she also wasn't. The way she had talked about her family revealed a very different side of her, one that was a lot more complex than the show she put on for others.

That was why, even though she was tall and a bit intimidating, Haruki wasn't afraid of her.

At the front of the room she noticed Haru and Kirigaya get up to use the bathroom. She recalled her short conversations with Haru, and how open and friendly the girl had been. Haruki would've thought she'd be the target, but showing such kindness in the face of such obviously bad, weird people was a little suspicious. Kirigaya, from what she'd seen of her, was completely clueless regarding the black class and went about more like a normal person, making a few friends and leaving it at that.

Haruki grinned. Which one was the target?

Hashiri raised her hand. "Excuse me, sensei? I don't think Ichinose and Kirigaya know where the restrooms are."

Mizorogi gasped. "You're right! I didn't show them yesterday. Hold on a minute, class. Keep working!"

He rushed out the door to deliver his pointless information. The minute he left the room, Hashiri stood up and looked at each of the girls in turn.

"I have an announcement!" she said, baring her sharp teeth. "The day after tomorrow, we'll be having a secret orientation meeting! If you want to know about the target and the rules of the black class, come to the warehouse outside this building at midnight."

Haruki frowned. Normally she would have used the announcement as a method of elimination. Whichever of her two suspects was gone would've had to be the target, because Nio would never reveal that information around them. Both Haru and Kirigaya were gone, though.

Oh well. She'd just have to wait for the orientation to learn who the real target was. She hoped it was Kirigaya. Killing someone as sweet as Haru-chan would be painful.

Then again, she wouldn't be around to feel that pain.

Class ended within a few hours, and all the students filed out to do whatever they wanted. Haruki saw Haru, Azuma, and Takechi leaving together. They were soon joined by Namatame and Kirigaya, and then by Hashiri. The little blonde girl just loved to slyly insert herself into every situation.

Once the largest group had left, the quieter girls headed off to their dorms; Shutou with Kaminaga, Hanabusa with Banba, and Kenmochi on her own. Haruki chuckled at Shutou's attempts to start a conversation with Kaminaga. They weren't bad attempts by any means, but Kaminaga was about as sociable as a statue.

Sensei left as well, and the hallway cleared out, leaving a long stretch of big, square linoleum tiles and columns. A few minutes passed where the only sound was the air conditioner. Haruki peeked back into the classroom to see what was taking Isuke so long to leave.

What she saw was a mass of long pink hair cascading over the sides of a desk. Haruki sighed. That girl just loved to sleep.

She walked over to the desk and shook her shoulder lightly. "Isuke-sama, it's time to get up. Class ended."

"No…" the pinkette grumbled. "Not yet, Papa… it's only eight…"

Deciding on a more direct approach, Haruki lifted a few locks of hair away from Isuke's eyes. The girl squinted and began to awaken, her bright orange irises slowly becoming visible under the veil of her eyelashes.

Haruki smiled. "Morning, Isuke-sama. You slept through class again."

Isuke blinked at her and pushed herself away from the surface of the desk. Yawning, she arched her body like a cat might and relaxed into the back of her chair.

Letting go of her hair, Haruki sat on top of the adjacent desk. "I enjoy sleeping too, but you really do sleep a lot. Didn't you go to bed before I did?"

With a grin, Isuke rolled her head back onto her shoulder. "Being as smart as I am means I need a lot of sleep. Besides," she shrugged. "It's not like he was teaching us anything important. If it were a class on economics or business, maybe I would listen."

Haruki thought all of the fields of study were equally important. She suspected that Isuke just brushed off the subjects she didn't find interesting and insisted that her opinion was the correct one. Most people would've found that self-centered and annoying, but Haruki found it more amusing than anything else.

"Also…" A hand clasped around her wrisp, and she noticed Isuke's angry smile. "What in all hell made you think you had permission to touch my hair?"

"I didn't really think about it at all," Haruki replied, waiting patiently for Isuke to let go. "Sorry, Isuke-sama."

If Isuke was satisfied with that apology, she sure didn't look it. But Isuke never looked satisfied with anything except herself, so Haruki didn't take it too hard.

"Of course you didn't," the girl said, releasing her and standing up. "Let's go back to the dorm. By the way, did I miss anything about the game?"

"There'll be a meeting at midnight the day after tomorrow in the warehouse."

"Figures. Let's go, then."

Haruki nodded, and the two began walkig toward the dorm building at a leisurely pace. As soon as they left its dimly lit halls, Haruki could feel the sunlight rejuvenating her. She loved how it had been nice and sunny the last few days.

On the way there she spotted Banba sitting in the shade of a tree with Hanabusa. It was strange to see Banba talking to anyone.

"Is that Banba-chan over there?" Isuke asked, dropping back a bit to see past Haruki.

"Yep." Haruki watched the silver-haired girl pick a dandelion from the near the root of the tree and pat it gently. "She looks sweet, but I think she's a little off her rocker."

Chuckling, Isuke caught back up to her. "Same with Hitsugi and Haru-chan, I'll bet. One of them has to be an assassin, after all. Actually, no one ever said the target couldn't be an assassin herself, so maybe they both are."

"Yikes," Haruki laughed, rubbing her head. "You've thought about this a lot."

The pink-haired girl stopped and turned to face her. "Why shouldn't I? There's a lot to this game that they aren't telling us. I don't like being kept in the dark, so I theorize."

Haruki stopped on one foot. "Okay…" She folded her arms. "Mind sharing those theories with me?"

Her request only earned her a shake of the head. "Aren't we rivals?" Isuke asked, twirling one of the curls that hung down by her face. "I don't know if I should be giving you pointers."

"Well…" Haruki wasn't one to bring up past favors, but this time she really needed info. "On the first day, I talked you out of doing something that might've gotten you expelled."

"Only because you benefitted from me not killing the target." Isuke started walking again, leaving Haruki behind. "You did that for yourself, just like I'm keeping my thoughts to myself."

Haruki wanted to point out that Isuke loved to say exactly what she was thinking, regardless of how it might offend the people around her. Instead she jogged up to the girl. "Sorry."

"Don't apologize for putting your own well-being first," Isuke frowned. "That's what you should be doing. And you did a pretty good job of convincing me, too."

Isuke would never actually admit that her plan had been a bad one. That was okay, though. Haruki didn't understand much, but she knew the impulsiveness that came with wanting to see one's family.

"If you just want a few of my observations, I wouldn't mind sharing them," Isuke said. "But only the stuff I don't think you'll be able to use for yourself."

It was better than nothing. "Sure," Haruki replied. "I'd like to understand you better, Isuke-sama."

"Ugh, fine." Isuke pointed toward the girl, who was showing the dandelion to Hanabusa. "I've been watching Banba-chan since the first day of school. I think she's hiding something."

"I thought so too," Haruki admitted. "She can't be this scared and reserved all the time, or she'd never be able to kill. Either that, or she's the target, but I don't think so."

"She's an assassin, believe me." Isuke grinned nastily. "I came into class late today, and when I passed by her desk I saw the doodles in her notebook."

Haruki raised an eyebrow. "I didn't know you spied on people."

"Please," Isuke sighed. "I only look at the things they let me see. Azuma fawning over Ichinose, for instance."

Even Haruki had noticed that. "Yeah. Takechi-san too. That's gonna be interesting."

"For Takechi, she's probably lying to get closer to Ichinose." Isuke tsked. "In Azuma's case, she's just weak."

They were silent for a moment. "Um…" Haruki remembered what they had been talking about before they got sidetracked. "What did you see in Banba-chan's notebook?"

"A lot of jagged lines." Isuke flipped out her hands to illustrate their messiness. "And picture of the stupid cat thing Ichinose gave us. The one that really got my attention was the girl with a giant hammer."

"Uh… giant hammer?"

"Or something." Isuke shrugged. "There was blood on it too."

Haruki sighed. She hadn't really wanted her suspicions about Banba confirmed. If a girl was quiet and reserved, couldn't she just be shy without being some murderous killer?

She heard a squeak from behind and turned around to see Banba clutching the stem of the dandelion in her hand, its seeds scattered in the air around her and Hanabusa's faces. She looked very upset. Maybe Hanabusa had blown on the flower by accident.

"I thought she might've had a troubled past," Haruki said quietly. "I wonder what you have to do to someone to make them that fragile."

Isuke's brow furrowed. "If she can't move on from whatever happened, then it's her own fault."

"That's pretty harsh," Haruki replied, frowning. "You have no idea what she might've gone through. She could've been abused or something-"

Her roommate's expression silenced her.

"If you don't understand what you're talking about…" Isuke growled. "Then you should shut your fucking mouth."

Haruki swallowed and edged away. "Sorry."

"And for god's sake, will you stop apologizing?"

The redhead said nothing, prompting Isuke to take a deep breath and laugh. "I swear, you're the biggest god damn idiot I've ever met."

Recovering from her initial shock, Haruki laughed a bit too. "And you're unexpectedly foul mouthed."

"What can I say?" Isuke grinned. "I give people the respect I think they deserve."

Looking up, Haruki realized that they were in front of the dormitories. She'd been so busy talking with Isuke that she hadn't noticed.

"Looks like we're here," she said, pulling open the door for her roommate.

"Well, aren't you the gentleman!" Isuke rolled her eyes and stepped into the building. "You can go exploring today if you want. It's not like I'm here to stop you from having fun."

Haruki was about to insist on having someone to socialize with, but she really did need some time to herself. "Sure," she said, waving. "Thanks, Isuke-sama."

"Don't thank me," Isuke replied, folding her arms. "If you're dirt poor, you should enjoy yourself sometimes."

While she walked away from the building, Haruki reflected on Isuke's response to her scolding a minute ago. Maybe Isuke didn't like being called out on her rudeness. Being the oldest of ten siblings, Haruki tended to go into "onee-chan" mode when she heard something she didn't approve of.

She got the feeling that wasn't it, though. Her words had triggered something very visceral. The Isuke she had seen was always calm, if not collected. When she got mad, it was calculated anger.

Now she knew that Isuke had another side to her, one that could be unpredictable and possibly dangerous.

Had something… happened to her?

Her gaze fell once more on Banba. The girl had gotten over the flower and was lying on her back with her eyes closed. Hanabusa sat on a fancy chair beside her, considerably out of her element but content. Instead of the negative aura that usually surrounded Banba, it looked like she was feeding off the positive energy of nature.

Haruki was glad. She liked to look out for people who were weak or shy. Her greatest fear each day was that one of her siblings would come home from school saying they'd been bullied. She wished she could take all of their suffering away.

_Hopefully I'll be able to. _She clenched her fist. _If everything goes well, we'll all be free._

She could only hope.

**Sumireko**

It had been Banba-san who requested they go outside after class. Sumireko had nearly choked on her tea.

She had met her roommate the day before. Banba was a soft-spoken, painfully shy girl with a long silver ponytail and a mismatched seifuku. She was not the type Sumireko usually associated with, but something about her was captivating.

Their outing could have started on a better note. When Banba had exited the building, she had immediately flinched away from the light. She had spent most of their walk with her head down, making it rather difficult to converse in any normal fashion. Her fear might have also been due to Yoshida-san, who had walked beside them carrying Sumireko's chair. Both light and men seemed to upset the girl greatly.

Now that they were in the shade of the trees, she was considerably calmer. She leaned against the smooth, pale brown trunk of the tree, silent except for the occasional deep breath.

Sumireko sat on her padded chair, enjoying the looks she got from other students passing by. Perhaps it was a bad thing, but she enjoyed being looked up to by other people. Fancy furniture was just perfect for that.

A finger tugged on her shoe. She peered down at her subject and found Banba holding a dandelion. It was big and white with fluffy seeds, ready to be scattered to the winds to make the next generation.

Smiling gently, Sumireko shifted onto one side of the chair. "A dandelion. How cute."

"It's alive," Banba mumbled, "so it can't be a relic."

This girl was often difficult to understand. "What do you mean by 'relic'?"

Banba looked up at her, revealing the thin scar that ran down the left side of her face. "A relic," she said, "is something valuble belonging to a dead person."

"Well…" Sumireko wasn't sure how that applied to this situation at all.

"It's very pretty," she finished, reaching to take it from Banba's hand. "May I?"

She slid it from Banba's weak grasp and gave it a good blow, creating a cloud of cream-colored puffs in he breeze. Having a reinforced ribcage required strong lungs.

"Look at them fly," she sighed. "Isn't that beautiful? They're like little spiders with their parachutes."

Her roommate was not nearly so thrilled. "W-why did you do that?" she whispered, her face the image of a child's despair. "Now it's gone!"

Sumireko hadn't expected a highschooler to be quite so upset about one dandelion. "We've just planted the seeds for lots more flowers," she replied. "They'll be back within a month, and plenty of them."

"No," Banba insisted, shaking her head. "It's gone, it's gone."

"It's all right, Banba-san," Sumireko said. "It's only a flower. And as I just said, there will be many more. You'll be able to look at all of them."

"But they'll go away too. Why does everything good go away?"

This was getting very out of hand very quickly. Sumireko searched for the right words to use. "By that same logic," she offered, "all the bad things must go away too, yes?"

Banba's violet eyes trembled along with her hands. The tree cast a shadow over them both, making their faces look blotchy.

Sighing, Sumireko patted the girl's head. "Sometimes when a good thing leaves, it paves the way for something even better. How's that?"

That statement rang true for Sumireko in particular. She could remember a single moment, lying on cold stone surrounded by blood, where she had wanted to die. The entire world had felt so bleak and lifeless in that moment. In the midst of such unbearable pain, she had screamed into the night, and that final scream had saved her life.

Had her arms and legs not been taken from her that day, she would never have become so strong. She would continue to become stronger until she could finally break out of the game she had been trapped inside for so long.

"Really?" Banba asked, turning her gaze toward the grass. "Is that really true?"

"Yes, it is." Sumireko nodded. "I don't know what you've been through personally Banba-san, but trust me when I say that it can get better if you put in effort."

Her roommate went quiet and returned to her spot at the base of the tree. A few leaves had fallen around the area where she lay, clustered around the edges of her body like a chalk outline. Sumireko had seen far too many of those in a short forteen years.

She decided to let the girl rest for as long as she needed to. It was a very nice day to relax outside and watch the other students go about their business. Watching gave one a sense of power.

"Maybe… I need to try harder."

"I didn't mean to be presumptuous," Sumireko replied, glancing back at Banba. "In that case, what do you need to try harder at?"

Banba's face twitched, and her eyes widened. "M-making friends?"

An unexpected answer. Carefully, Sumireko retrieved the lonely stem of the dandelion from where she had discarded it. "I think that's a great idea. Friends would be very nice."

"Um!" Banba cried suddenly. "Do you have any friends, Hanabusa-san?"

Twice in two days this girl had left her speechless.

"Well…" she made her mouth move, despite the clenching feeling in her jaw. "Yes, of course I do."

"I'm sorry!" Banba was already bowing in apology. "That was very rude of me."

Coughing lightly, Sumireko gave her a not-quite-angry but not-quite-kind look. "Please calm yourself, Banba-san. I am not so thin skinned that I can't handle an unintentional insult."

Then she remembered Banba's comment from the night before. "If you'll recall," she added, "I have rather thick skin."

Silence followed, during which even the birds stopped singing.

"Was…" Banba stared at her, flustered. "Were you making a joke, Hanabusa-san?"

"Yes, I was making a joke."

"Then, it's all right to laugh?"

Sumireko sighed and put her hand on her forehead. "I wouldn't be much of a friend if I didn't allow you to laugh at my own bad jokes, would I?"

Stun and amazement passed over Banba's features before she finally giggled into her hand. Her cheeks were tinged with pink, and her smile was like that of an innocent child. Happiness looked surprisingly good on her.

"Thank you," she mumbled, her shyness returning. "I had a friend a long time ago, but I had forgotten…" she trailed off.

An idea bloomed in Sumireko's mind. "I have an idea," she said, grinning. "But you have to promise you won't get upset, no matter what it is."

"Eh?" Banba clutched her hands to her chest. "How can I promise that?"

"Please trust me," Sumireko replied, rising from her seat. "A friend would not hurt another friend on purpose."

While her roommate reveled in her new status as "friend", Sumireko bent over and picked every puffy dandelion she could find around the trees. When she straightened up again, she had two fistfuls of flowers.

Taking a deep breath of fresh air, she shook them all around, spreading the fluff all around the tree roots and perfectly mowed grass while Banba watched her in awe.

She turned back to her roommate, a true smile on her face. "I've planted a garden. We need to remember this spot."

"Wow," Banba breathed, leaning over as though she were trying to find the tiny seeds. "How long to they take to grow?"

Although Sumireko had studied many exotic plants, she had never bothered to put her time into lowly weeds. "I'm not sure," she admitted. "I suppose we'll have to stick around and find out."

That statement made Banba uncomfortable. "Are you saying that you plan to stay at Myojou for a while?"

"I will not kill the target immediately." Sumireko sat back down in her chair, welcoming the cushiony support. "I have my own very specific motive."

She had to be the last one to make her attempt, no matter what. If the target was killed before then, so be it. Since this was Ichinose Haru though, she doubted that would happen.

_Ichinose-san has a power of her own, after all._

She peered down at her roommate. "Will you be leaving us soon, Banba-san?"

The girl swallowed hard. "I-I don't know."

"Then it would serve you well to decide," Sumireko replied. "Though, it would make me happier if you stayed."

Nodding, Banba laid down on the grass beneath her tree. She gazed upward into the hundreds of tiny branches that sheltered her fragile form.

She closed her eyes. "Hanabusa-san?"

"Yes?"

"Will you make tea again?"

What a simple, yet complicated girl. Sumireko couldn't help but love her.

"Yes, I will make tea again."

**Kouko**

Kouko tried not to think about the large pile of papers in front of her. She'd volunteered to help sensei copy and sort worksheets for the next week of class. Part of her wondered if things would last that long, but this seemed like a very laid-back group of assassins.

_I might have a chance against them, _she thought as she put another pink worksheet into its respective stack. _My best chance will be to catch the target off guard._

According to Hashiri's announcement, she'd know who that target was tomorrow, on the fifth day of class. It was an odd choice to give so much free time between their arrival and the start of the game. There had to be a reason why.

Sorting papers was a calming pastime that helped her think about those sorts of questions. Back at her orphanage, no one had trusted her to help out with big, important jobs. She would just trip on a board, or spill paint everywhere, or something far worse that was always left unspecified. Kouko had a knack for novelty when it came to being a klutz.

All that came back around to the biggest mistake Kouko had ever made. She grimaced and crinkled the edge of one unfortunate paper. _If only I hadn't rushed connecting that one wire…_

None of that mattered now. If she could do this one job right, she'd never have to kill again. She could atone for her sins and live a good life.

Like Irena-sempai would've wanted.

She adjusted her glasses and lifted her head to see Kenmochi and Shutou seated at and on two desks. Shutou was looking at her with a grin. Her roommate had taken an uncanny interest in her, particularly in the necklace she kept in their nightstand drawer.

Her inquiries were sincere, which made it all the more difficult for Kouko to remain stoic and emotionless. Still, the fact remained that she had a job to do, and she couldn't let anything distract her from it. Once she was free of her shackles, she could make friends as she pleased.

"Are you sure you don't want any help, Kaminaga-san?" Shutou asked, eyeing the huge workload strewn across sensei's desk. "Work goes much faster with two people."

This was the third time Shutou had offered to help. "I assure you," Kouko replied, "I prefer to work on my own. This is relaxing for me." She nodded at Kenmochi. "Why don't you and Kenmochi-san go do something fun?"

Shutou laughed good-naturedly. "I've already explored the campus. If I went out there now, I'd run into the other half of the class. They've been parading around out there, just like yesterday." She poked her thumb toward the window. "See for yourself."

Kouko stood in a lady-like fashion and went to the window. Through the thin glass she saw six of her classmates- Azuma, Ichinose, Takechi, Kirigaya, Namatame, and Hashiri- walking down the central path in a large group while the regular students stared and giggled. They took no notice of their onlookers, instead talking merrily and in some cases being overly friendly with one another.

"Namatame and Kirigaya-san are very close, aren't they?" she commented, absentmindedly dusting off the windowsill.

"I think it's cute," Shutou sighed, sitting crosslegged on her desk. "Young love."

Kenmochi frowned. "I don't think it's really _love_. Anyone would feel protective of Kirigaya-san. I mean, look at her."

"True." Shutou was pushing her legs into a butterfly stretch. "Then again, maybe you're a little biased, Kenmochi-san."

"Huh?" Kenmochi sat up straighter. "Why would I be biased?"

Turning on her heel, Kouko walked dutifully back to sensei's desk. "If I recall correctly, you almost forgot to turn in your introductory worksheet because you were entranced by Namatame-san's hair."

The brunette turned as red as said hair. "I was looking at the schedule for tomorrow! Her head was in the same general direction!"

Resting her elbows on her knees, Shutou gave her a sympathetic smile. "Don't be embarrassed, Kenmochi-san. She does have amazing hair."

Kenmochi folded her arms. "Oh yeah? If you guys are going to point out those sorts of things, I'll point out how you keep trying to talk to Kaminaga-san, even though you always get rejected."

That statement made Kouko glance over her shoulder. She didn't mind if people gossiped, but she didn't want said gossip to include her.

"Rejected is a harsh word, don't you think?" Grunting, Shutou attempted a half-lotus. "And she's definitely pretty, but I just want to be her friend."

Being called pretty by someone she barely knew made Kouko a little uncomfortable. "I'm still here, you know," she said irritably. "Are you implying that you would go out with another girl?"

Shutou shrugged. "It doesn't really matter to me, so long as there's love. But let's not talk about that."

Her legs were now folded into a full lotus. Just looking at them made Kouko cringe. "In that case," the black-haired girl said, "I'll get back to work."

She bent over her papers once more and returned to her original task. Here, there could be order. Nothing would happen that she wasn't expecting. Organization was something one rarely achieved in life, so Kouko liked to immerse herself in what little of it there was.

Words drifted past her as she lost track of time, the shreds of pointless conversations between Shutou and Kenmochi. At least they were enjoying themselves. From the sounds of their voices, she gathered that there were no hard feelings about the teasing.

_I could analyze a conversation all day, _she thought, sorting with both hands simultaneously. _Why can't I have one?_

Thinking back to the orphanage, she pictured all the other children running around and playing. In truth, they were training for the day when they would make their first kill, running around with practice weapons and attacking fake targets.

Just as no one wanted to work with Kouko, no one wanted to play with her either. She sat by herself in the shade of the overhang, or on the old squeaky porch swing, or in the chapel, watching the colored shards of light on the floor created by six stained glass windows.

If she were lucky, someone would remind her it was time for dinner. If not, she would sit there for hours, wondering why God hadn't given her any useful talents.

No matter what, Irena-sempai would arrive before nine to bring her back to the childrens' bedrooms. She didn't object to the way Kouko skipped physical education, and she always brought a little something if it was past dinnertime.

_Irena-sempai protected me. _She swallowed hard. _It's because of her that I was able to go on when no one else loved me._

_And I killed her._

"Kaminaga-san, you're bleeding!"

Kouko stopped her feverish sorting and stared down at her hand. Blood trickled down her index finger, smeared near the tip.

"Papercut," she sighed, setting the paper off to the side. "I didn't even notice."

A tissue was pushed into her hand. "Here," Shutou said. "That's a nasty one. Did anything get on the papers?"

There was some on the ones she'd been holding. Because their class was so small, it would be glaringly obvious. "I'll have to copy a few more," Kouko said, getting to her feet with her finger submerged in the tissue.

Shutou shook her head. "It's fine, I'll do it. You should apply pressure with that tissue until you stop bleeding."

Before Kouko could protest, her roommate had picked up a clean worksheet and left for the copy room.

Feeling useless again, she sat back in sensei's chair. She wanted so badly to get a new start by succeeding at Myojou, yet here she was failing at the easiest tasks. She _enjoyed_ filing papers.

From her desk, Kenmochi looked concerned. "Can I say something, Kaminaga-san?"

Kouko met her eyes. "You might as well."

"Shutou-san isn't someone you need to worry about," the brunette said, playing with her braid. "Granted, she's a little too kind and she says some confusing things, but she isn't dangerous like the others."

"I'm sure," Kouko replied. "That said, I don't have time to make friends with her. I have to make absolutely sure I don't fail my mission."

"I feel the same way." Kenmochi stood up and let her braid fall back to her chest. "You know why I still talk with her?"

Kouko's silence prompted her to continue. "We rode the same train to Myojou," she said. "It was really late, and I fell asleep on the way. Shutou-san could've disposed of me any way she wanted right then and there, right?"

Nodding, Kouko folded her arms over her blue dress shirt. "Go on."

"When I woke up, I was in bed in the dorms, and it was time to get up for school. I asked Takechi-san about it, and she said I'd been carried in by another girl at midnight."

Rather than wake the girl up, Shutou had carried her all the way to her dorm. Kouko did recall her roommate complaining about her stiff shoulders on the second day of school. To think she had done something like that for someone she barely knew.

Walking over to sensei's desk, the brunette took a small stack of papers to sort herself. "The point is, Shutou-san went out of her way to be kind to me. I don't know if she had an ulterior motive or not. She just seems… lonely. If she wants to talk, I think you should indulge her at least once."

Shutou seemed like a charismatic, friendly person. "Lonely" was the last word Kouko would've thought of to describe her. Despite that, she hadn't seen anyone else talking with her. Most of the other girls had split into their own groups and entered the early stages of friendship, leaving her, Kouko, and Kenmochi behind.

_We three who stayed behind in the classroom are the ones who can't break into the system. We're the odd ones out in a class full of eccentrics. _

Two stacks of papers were dropped on top of the ones she'd already made. She glanced up at Kenmochi, who was obviously pleased with her job. "Looks like I've still got it," the brunette said. "Not to brag, but I'm a really fast sorter."

"I can see that," Kouko replied grudgingly. She didn't like being shown up at one of the few things she was good at. "Were you a teacher's assistant in junior high?"

"No." Kenmochi shook her head, her momentary happiness retreating into whatever cave it had come out of. "It's because I ate lunch separately from the other kids. I had one sensei who'd let me eat lunch in his room if I helped him file papers."

Not unlike her own childhood. "I'm sorry about that," Kouko said, closing her eyes. "I was the same way."

It was then that Shutou came back into the room. "Paper jam," she explained, setting down the last few worksheets on their pile. "Wow, it looks like you finished while I was gone! Did Kenmochi-san help you out?"

"Yes. Thank you, Kenmochi-san." Kouko got out of the chair for the last time, smoothing out her white skirt. "Shutou-san, shall we head back to the dorm? We may as well get to know each other."

"Sure," Shutou answered, surprised.

They exited the room together, leaving Kenmochi to her own devices. While they were walking, Suzu smiled knowingly. "Did Kenmochi-san say something to you while I was out?"

"No," Kouko replied, cracking a smile. "Nothing like that."

As they left the room together, it occurred to Kouko that she could've offered to speak with any number of people over the years. Most of them would have refused, but some surely would have said yes.

She couldn't help but wonder how many conversations she had missed out on.

With that in mind, she listened as well as she could to Shutou while she talked about flowers and other old-fashioned things. The same pathway they had been using for several days to reach their dormitory seemed different now. She could see the green leaves of the trees and the students resting under them, perfectly content on a nice day. There was even a butterfly perched on a blade of grass.

Although she hardly said a word the whole time, Kouko felt oddly at peace. Shutou's way of talking made her sound like an older woman at times. It was as though she were talking to Irena-sempai again, complete with the sudden philosophical comments.

_Maybe, _she thought, _God is trying to tell me something right now._

Her mission lingered in the back of her mind, a constant reminder that she was not safe just yet.

**I hope my version of Isuke isn't too bad. For all of these characters, I kind of took the parts of them I liked or found interesting and focused on those. Most of them are intended to be more like their manga versions, though some like Chitaru have a bit more of their anime-selves in there. Since it's an AU, I try to not worry and just let it flow. I was scared to write Banba-chan and Sumireko, but it hasn't been too bad. They're actually really cute together. **

**On a side note, I realized that I've been calling Haru's hair pink. I know it's really more red or orange, but I already have two redheads and orange just makes a weird image in my head.**


	8. Chapter 8

**I'm back! Another chapter, yay! I hope this isn't moving too slowly for anyone. **

**Tokaku**

Tokaku awoke at six thirty like she always did. Getting up early was something she had grown used to throughout her school career, and she liked it. Being cold at first was a great way to get her body moving. Her mind was also more active in the morning.

She found her uniform, which lay folded at the foot of her bed. She could have sworn she'd left it on the floor before entering the shower last night, but its current state didn't surprise her. Her uniform had ended up this way all five days of the black class. It wasn't exactly fancy, so it didn't look that different if it got wrinkled. Honestly, she couldn't care less about that sort of thing.

That said, she did like the neatness of the smooth, folded clothes. Taking one piece off the pile at a time, she quickly dressed herself. She grabbed her brown knee-high boots and pulled them on, lacing them up like she'd done a million times before. Those were long laces.

When she'd finished, she looked over and saw to her dismay that not only was Ichinose asleep, she appeared to be in the middle of a dream.

Tokaku walked over to the side of her bed and looked down at her. There was something fascinating about Ichinose Haru, but she couldn't figure out what. Moving in closer, Tokaku examined her thoroughly. She had round, pinkish cheeks and long eyelashes. Her messy magenta hair stuck out in every direction, making her head resemble a pom pom. Other than those scars and that scent, she seemed like just an ordinary girl.

"Kaa-san…"

The words left Ichinose's lips, and Tokaku sprang back in surprise. Her brain calmed down when she saw that her subject was still asleep.

_She's dreaming of her mother_, Tokaku thought, frowning. _Maybe she's homesick._

That's right, Ichinose had a family. A family that loved her. A family who would grieve for her when their daughter's dead body came home.

She didn't usually consider stuff like that. Being the way she was, she'd never had many loved ones. The Azuma's weren't exactly big on family togetherness, unless you counted training until dusk and sitting silently at meals. The only real family she could think of was, of course, Aunt Mako.

Now the visions were coming back. Black tree branches blew around her head, and the little shrine stood right in front of her again, tormenting her as it had for years.

_…__is watching from that shrine._

"Kaa-san, I can't eat any more…"

Tokaku looked back at Ichinose, who was now happily munching on her bed sheets. She squinted to make sure she was seeing that correctly.

"These donuts are the best," the girl mumbled through wet cloth. "And the melon buns…"

Enough was enough. Tokaku grabbed the comforter and pulled it away. Ichinose awoke with a start and squeaked at the sudden rush of cold air.

"Ah! What was that for, Tokaku-san?" She rubbed her eyes. "Wah, it's so cold!"

"You need to get ready for school," Tokaku replied blandly, discarding the comforter in a wad beside the bed. "You have five minutes to get ready, or I'm leaving without you."

"Only five?!" Ichinose scrambled out of bed, tripped on the comforter, and crashed to the floor.

Wincing, Tokaku helped her to her feet. "All right, more like ten. But I don't want to wait all morning."

Ichinose groaned and rubbed her head, further messing up her hair. "You sure are punctual for someone who leaves her clothes all over the floor."

Pink tinged Tokaku's cheeks. "You mean you've been folding my clothes for me?"

"What, did you think it was a ghost doing it?" Ichinose grinned. She held out her index finger as though quoting someone important. "You should take better care of yourself, Tokaku-san."

"How about you?" Tokaku replied, disguising her embarrassment with grumpiness. "You were eating donuts in your sleep. And last night, too."

"Don't you ever have dreams like that?" Ichinose cried, blushing. "And there was so much good food last night! I don't know how you could sit eating curry the whole time."

Tokaku sighed and leaned against the wall by the door. "Whatever, just get ready."

In surprisingly little time, Ichinose had dressed, washed up, done her hair, and put together her school supplies. It was nice to see that she could hurry when she wanted to.

The two of them left the dorm building and crossed the stone bridge that lead to the main school facilities. Although she didn't usually pay attention to aesthetics, Tokaku had to admit the bridge was a nice touch.

"Morning, Azuma-san! Ichinose-san!"

Behind them was Sagae, with her long red hair tied back in a ponytail and pocky hanging out of her mouth. She smiled, and Tokaku wondered why so many of these assassins had such sharp teeth. Most of them weren't too bad, but this girl had fangs, and Hashiri… she didn't even want to think about the smiles Hashiri had given her. They were like something out of the depths of hell.

Ichinose waved back at the girl. "Good morning, Haruki-san!"

The redhead caught up with them and walked beside Ichinose. "Man, I can't wait for breakfast. The food here is so amazing!" She gestured toward the girl behind her who, annoyingly, was Inukai. "Don'tcha think, Isuke-sama?"

"I've eaten much better," Inukai answered haughtily. "And all you did last night was eat sweets like a pig."

The fact that Tokaku and Inukai agreed on something disturbed the blue-haired girl just a bit.

Beside her, Haru was patting Sagae's arm supportively. "I was eating them too, so don't worry!" Her eyes glazed over as she remembered last night's feast. "They were so good!"

"Yeah," Sagae laughed, poking her nose. "Tell your friends that a healthy dose of sweets'll make them big and strong like Haruki nee-san!"

Tokaku frowned. "How can you have a healthy dose of sweets? They're unhealthy by definition."

Inukai folded her arms and smiled cutely. "No one was talking to you, Azuma."

What a stuck up bitch… Tokaku turned away from her and resolved not to look in her general direction. For the rest of her life, if she could help it.

Caught in the middle of a rivalry, Ichinose gave Sagae an apologetic smile. "Tokaku-san and I want to get a good place in the breakfast line. I'll see you in class, Haruki-san." She walked a little faster to create distance between them and Inukai.

Sagae seemed a confused, but she shrugged and waved goodbye to Ichinose, who grinned back and kept walking with Tokaku.

"Thanks for that," Tokaku sighed, relieved. "I guess you aren't that naïve after all."

"Who said I was?" Ichinose pouted. "Does being kind mean you're naïve these days?"

Tokaku was about to answer when her phone vibrated in her pocket.

"Who's calling you?" Ichinose asked, peering over. "Is it from your school?"

Shielding the screen, Tokaku frowned. She really hated Kaiba sometimes. "It's not any of your business, is it?"

Ichinose's face drooped, making her regret her choice of words. "All right, fine. My sensei from 17 Academy has been giving me riddles to solve, only they're stupid and pointless. There aren't even any hints." She held up her phone to show Ichinose. It read "The world is full of _".

The girl stared at it for a second. "Hmm. And there's no hint at all?"

Closing the phone, Tokaku slipped it back into her pocket. "I told you it was dumb. I put in every answer I can think of, and all he says is 'Wrong! LOL!'" She did the last bit in an exaggerated voice. "So that's why I'm just going to… what's so funny?"

Ichinose had burst into peals of laughter. "That voice you did for your sensei! Do it again!"

"Um…" Tokaku wore a total deadpan expression. "Totally wrong! LOL!"

Apparently this was the most hilarious thing in the world to Ichinose. The pinkette put her hand on Tokaku's shoulder to steady herself.

"Why are you laughing?" Tokaku cried angrily. "How would you like to get told that every single day?"

Blinking back tears, Ichinose straightened up and smiled at her. "Sorry, sorry. I just didn't think you were any fun."

"Hmph." Tokaku gave Ichinose a grudging smile for her trouble. "That's because I'm not fun. Anyway, I report to him every day what's going on and try to solve this one damn riddle."

They had reached the cafeteria by then. The place was more crowded in the morning, since everyone had to eat around the same time. At dinner they could spread it out.

Powering their way through the crowd, Tokaku and Ichinose joined the line, got their food, and found two empty seats next to their classmates. No point in talking with other students.

"Wah…" Ichinose sighed, sitting down with her breakfast. "There are so many people! And that dream made me really hungry, too."

Tokaku glanced down at her breakfast and was awed by the amount of food. She herself had picked a traditional breakfast with rice and miso soup, but Ichinose had several different countries represented on her plate.

Across from them sat Namatame, Hashiri, and Kirigaya. Namatame gave a small wave. "Good morning, Ichinose-san. Azuma-san. Did you sleep well?"

"Yep!" Ichinose said brightly, twirling her fork expertly before plunging it into some vegetables. "I love being in a dorm. It's like having a sleepover every day. How about you, Tokaku-san?"

Tokaku shrugged. "It's nothing special." In truth, she'd had difficulty sleeping. Today was the day of the assassin meeting, after all. The feeling swelling in her gut was not a good one.

After they settled in, Ichinose and Kirigaya got to talking. Namatame and Tokaku focused on eating, with a bit of chat mixed in. Tokaku couldn't help but feel that something wasn't right about this scenario.

She finally realized that it was Hashiri. The blonde sat silently the whole time playing with that tablet of hers. She was intently focused on something, and every now and then she would chuckle or take a bite of her melon bread.

What was that girl up to?

A warm hand shook her shoulder. "C'mon, Tokaku-san! Let's get to class."

Breakfast was a lot shorter than dinner. Tokaku scraped the remains of her breakfast into a trash can and followed the others to the high school building with Hashiri trailing behind her.

"Hey!"

She turned toward the annoying voice. "Finally decided to say something?"

The blonde chugged along on her short legs. She was about the same height as Kirigaya, just much fuller. There was no mistaking her for a grade schooler.

It took a few seconds for her to catch up to Tokaku. "Just wondering how you're feeling about the meeting tonight," she whispered with that awful smile. "Being friends with Ichinose is about to pay off big time, huh? You used this extra time really well, I gotta say."

Tokaku's eyes narrowed. "Shut up. I'm not a liar like you."

Hashiri held her hands behind her back. "Then you're saying you want to be Haru's friend _and _kill her? I think I see a flaw in your logic, nee-san."

"We aren't friends, either," Tokaku scowled. "You'll see at the meeting."

"Good!" Hashiri winked and ran to catch up with the rest of the group. She immediately struck up a conversation with Ichinose. When asked why she hadn't said anything during breakfast, she gave a very vague answer and changed the topic.

Tokaku stayed behind by herself. Saying that she wasn't Ichinose's friend had begun to feel more and more wrong. She could act tough and put on airs all she wanted, but she still had no idea what she would do at that meeting, or afterward.

Ichinose's face flashed in front of her. How could she ever think of hurting a girl like that? There was nothing Ichinose had done wrong, and Tokaku didn't even have a wish. Why should she have to kill an innocent girl?

_I always hated liars, _she thought. _Am I becoming one?_

She glanced up and saw Hashiri bouncing happily, as though none of this were happening. This girl knew more than anyone else did about the game. She talked nonstop with everyone, yet one always got the sense that she was alone.

_I just know there's something weird about her, _Tokaku thought, trudging along behind everyone else. _And I'm going to find out what it is._

**Haru**

It seemed to be a recurring theme that Haru found math difficult. Why did all science have to have math in it? She liked learning about animals and rocks.

_They should put a little biology into geometry to make it fair, _she thought, trying to puzzle out yet another of the endless equations popping up on her screen.

When she got a message from Otoya-chan, it came as a relief rather than a distraction. She tapped the box to open it.

"Hey Harucchi! Lets walk around after class today!"

Otoya just couldn't get enough of exploring, it seemed. She had requested the same thing all four days she'd been in class.

"Of course!" Haru texted back. "I'll tell the others."

The response message appeared only a second later. "Can we go alone this time?"

Haru hesitated. She hated to admit it, but she still didn't fully trust Otoya. The raven-haired girl was kind to her, if not always to others. She was tall and pretty, with sea green eyes and a confident smile…

Wait, why should it matter what she looked like? Haru rubbed her head to work out her image of the girl and examine her as a person instead.

As a person, Otoya was overly friendly, clingy, and laid back. She was funny and a bit rude, but never to Haru. Her fun-loving nature was overpowering, though not necessarily bad. Haru doubted she would have enjoyed herself so much these last four days if not for Otoya's ideas of where to go and what to do.

_If I go somewhere with her alone, _she thought nervously, _I'll get to see what she acts like when other people aren't around. Specifically, when Tokaku-san isn't around._

That alone would be worth it. She really wanted to trust Otoya more, and if she had to take a gamble, so be it. Her entire life so far had been one big gamble.

"Okay, we can go alone," she wrote back, her fingers shaking as she typed. "Let's get some icecream at the stand Nio mentioned."

"Yay! Ur the best! :D"

Haru returned to her math. She felt apprehensive about meeting Otoya, but also excited. Even though she didn't know the girl very well, this seemed like more than a friendly outing.

_It's just because I've never gone anywhere alone with someone pretty, _she sighed. _She only asked to go alone because she doesn't like Tokaku-san._

Speaking of Tokaku-san, she should message her roommate to tell her not to wait after class. She wondered how the blue haired girl would take the news. Probably not well.

She typed "Tokaku-san, don't wait for me after school, okay?"

It was a full minute before Tokaku responded. Haru guessed she must have zoned out. Although she pretended to be on top of things all the time, Tokaku had a tendency to get tangled up and lost in her thoughts. Talking to her was evidence of that; Haru had not expected to learn about Tokaku's mean grandma during a conversation about videogames.

She was kind of cute that way, actually.

The reply appeared on her screen. "Why?"

"Otoya-chan and I are getting ice cream. She wanted to be alone with me."

The pink haired girl made the correct decision not to turn around and look at the expression on Tokaku's face.

"You don't have to do what she says."

"I don't mind." Haru answered, trying not to make it sound like Tokaku wasn't welcome. "You and I are roommates already, so I want to spend time with her too."

No answer. Haru was about to return to her annoying math when another message arrived.

"I don't care. Do what you want."

Well, that was cold. Haru knew that Tokaku worried about her, and she was thankful for it. She just wished the girl would realize she was willing to take risks like this and didn't need to be reprimanded.

"Don't be mad, Tokaku-san," she wrote. "I have to do things this way, okay?"

Sighing, Haru got to work and waited to be saved by the bell.

**Otoya**

Otoya rarely got this excited about anything besides blood or death, so having her heart beat fast over simply getting ice cream with Haru was an unfamiliar feeling. She leaned against the wall beside the classroom door, waiting for the moment the girl walked out.

The last few days had been a mixture of heaven and hell. Romping around with Haru was the most fun she'd had in a while, and as for Haru herself, Otoya wondered if she had stumbled upon an angel. If she were feeling like herself, she would have planned from the first night onward to bind that angel's wings and slowly pick her apart, piece by lovely piece.

Right now, she wasn't feeling like herself at all. She didn't even want to harm Haru, let alone kill her. The beating of her heart and the heat coursing throughout her body weren't driving her to act like they always did. Every time the urge to kill came up, she forced it back down. Or rather, something forced it down. She couldn't say for certain that she was doing it on purpose.

After thinking about it for a while, she'd come to a conclusion. This had all started on the first night, when she'd seen Haru for the first time and encountered that weird smell.

That was why she'd asked Haru out alone. While they were by themselves, she could get the answers she wanted.

"Sorry for the wait!" Haru said, leaping out of the classroom and landing on one foot. Just hearing the girl's voice sent warmth throughout her body. "I had to pick up my worksheet. Sensei said that over half the class didn't take it! Do they want to get bad grades?"

Being among the ones who hadn't, Otoya shrugged. "Grades aren't everything, y'know. I'd much rather enjoy myself than follow anyone else's rules."

Haru didn't comment on that, which was for the best. It was something they probably wouldn't agree on. Instead she skipped down the hall, calling back over her shoulder. "C'mon, let's go get some ice cream!"

"Wait up!" Otoya laughed, running up behind her. "You're not gonna get away from me!"

She reached for Haru, who sped up to avoid her grasp. "You can't catch me!" the pinkette giggled, skidding around the corner of the hallway and leaping down a flight of stairs.

"Oh yeah?" Otoya jumped up and slid down the handrail with ease. "We'll see, Harucchi!"

Before she knew it, the two of them were on a high-speed chase out the building and down the sidewalk to the ice cream stand. Things were so much better without that stupid Tokaku around. Otoya usually chased girls into places, but chasing them out was just as fun. Her heart pounded in her ears as she ran faster and faster, still unable to catch that elusive pink-haired girl.

They finally slowed down when a little food stand came into view decorated with pink, yellow, and plenty of ice cream logos. Otoya skidded to a stop, her feet burning inside her dress shoes. Ahead of her, Haru seemed fine, though she was breathing hard.

"You didn't… catch me!" she panted, the corners of her mouth turning up. "Yay, I win!"

Otoya could hardly believe it. "Yeah!" she breathed, looking the girl up and down. "You don't look like you'd be that fast. You must have a lot of running practice." She grinned. "That's really cool!"

Blushing a little at the compliment, Haru pointed toward the ice cream stand where the vendor was looking a little concerned for his two customers. "Let's get the ice cream now! I need to cool down my throat."

"Sure thing." Otoya's throat was burning too, after all. She pulled her wallet out of her bag. "What do you want?"

"I can pay for my own," Haru said, walking up to the vendor.

Striding up to the stand, Otoya put a hand on her shoulder. "Nope! I lost the race, so this is my penalty game. What do you want?"

"Thank you. Um… I'll have that one." Haru pointed to a strawberry ice cream cone. She really did sound thankful. Otoya wondered if she was short on cash. So was she, but she was willing to shell out a little for this.

Once they had gotten their ice cream, they walked further down the sidewalk to find somewhere nice to sit. As it turned out, there were some benches and very pretty trees around the entrance to the greenhouse.

Sitting down with her chocolate cone, Otoya shrugged off her bag. "I love running around," she said, "so playing chase was really fun. I didn't think you'd like it too, though."

Haru licked her strawberry ice cream and shivered. "I guess that's something we have in common, then. Unlike our birthdays or the food we eat."

So Haru did have a sense of distrust. "I really do like rice," Otoya replied, taking a bite of the dessert and wincing at the pain in her teeth. "The birthday thing was a lie, though. I just wanted you to talk to me."

"I know." The pink-haired girl wiped some ice cream off her cheek. "That's why I'm not upset that you lied."

Now was as good a time as any. Otoya turned toward Haru. "Actually, I brought you out here to ask you a question."

Without waiting for the answer, she took Haru's free hand and pulled her closer. The ice cream nearly toppled to the ground.

A cruel smile stretched across Otoya's face. "That question is: Why don't I want to kill you?"

Haru didn't respond. Otoya gripped her hand tighter, watching the familiar terror rise in her victim's eyes. _I could kill you right now, _she thought. _It would be so wonderful to kill you._

_So why don't I want to?_

"I…" Haru stammered, pulling at Otoya's wrist. "I don't know. Why are you acting like this?" She forced a smile.

"Because I'm confused!" Otoya answered, gritting her teeth impatiently. "I don't understand what I'm feeling, and it hurts. So hurry up and tell me!"

Her victim struggled weakly. "This isn't like you," Haru stammered, her magenta eyes piercing Otoya's defenses. "You're better than this, Otoya-chan. That's why I want to be your friend."

Clenching her fist, Otoya searched herself for the impulse to strike her, choke her, exert any kind of force at all.

And she found nothing.

She let go of Haru with a long sigh. "I do too. That's the problem."

"Now I'll ask you something," Haru said quietly, laying her hand on top of the one that had grabbed her not ten seconds ago. "Why is it a problem?"

Otoya thought about giving some roundabout answer. When she gazed into those bright eyes though, the words caught in her throat. Being a torturer, she had a lot of experience peering into people's eyes. Some peoples were shallow, and others were guarded. Haru's eyes were an abyss of pain and wisdom.

She swallowed. "You know a lot more than I do, right Harucchi?"

The girl turned away from Otoya, biting into her ice cream and shuddering from cold. "Nobody can know everything. Sometimes I wish I did, but then there would be no point in living. And there's always a point in living, even when you feel like the world is crushing you."

She looked back at Otoya. The weakness had disappeared from her visage, replaced by bravery. "I _will_ live, Otoya-chan. If there's anything you need from this competition, maybe I can help you with it. But if you don't want to kill me, you shouldn't try. It'll only bring you pain."

Haru wasn't the cute little girl she made herself out to be. If anything, she was awe inspiring. She was a magnet drawing people in, making even the most ruthless killer hesitate. There was no way to escape her pull; either you approached her and fell into her trap, or you never approached her at all.

Otoya had fallen into that trap face-first, and there was nothing she could do about it.

"The scent…" she mumbled, inhaling deeply. "It's even stronger now."

"What?" Haru frowned, sniffing the air. "Do I smell bad?"

"No." Otoya growled. "It's nothing. Looks like I'll have to figure this out myself."

The sky above them was deep and blue, stretching upward indefinitely. When she was a kid, Otoya had spent her free time wondering about stupid things. One of those was what would happen if she broke a hole in the sky. Being herself, she'd imagined a monster crawling out and crushing cities while she rode on its back triumphantly.

Now that she thought about it, it had always been her dream to have power over the ones who abused her. When she was with Haru, she felt that desire slowly slipping away. She couldn't decide if she liked it or not.

"Otoya-chan," Haru said softly. "Listen to me. I don't want you to leave, okay?"

Right then, Otoya felt an overwhelming urge to hug this girl. Hug her and keep her in one place forever.

"I… don't want you to leave either."

She didn't know much, but she did know that.

Haru sat there calmly stroking her hand. The touch was very calming, except for the red marks on Haru's wrist where Otoya had grabbed her. The sight of them made her queasy.

Otoya's eyelids drooped. Even after she had done something like that, Haru still showed her kindess.

She stared down at the her quizically, but all she got was another smile. Most of their classmates were full of fake, insubstantial smiles. Haru's smile had such a big effect on people because it was real.

"Jeez…" Otoya blushed. "Now I'm really screwed. I need that prize, but I definitely can't kill you."_And I don't want the others to kill you either_.

"We'll figure something out," Haru said confidently. "I offered to help you get your wish, and I meant it."

Otoya shook her head and grinned in amazement. "I don't get it. Why aren't you afraid of me?"

The answer came in conjunction with a soft breeze. "Because the world is full of forgiveness."

"What?"

"It's a riddle I heard before," Haru replied. "I just thought of the answer."

That same soft wind blew the hair back from Otoya's forehead. This was the second time Haru had forgiven her for something. It meant just as much now as it had then.

"You're so nice, Harucchi." She smiled. "And you're right. I want to be your friend too."

The pink haired girl's face softened. "I know you're a good person, Otoya-chan. Maybe people tell you otherwise, but I know." She lifted Otoya's hand and squeezed it. "I'll be here for you, 'kay?"

It was like this girl could see right through her. She understood the emotions Otoya kept hidden behind all her different smiles.

Taking Haru's hand in her own, she kissed the red spot on her wrist. "Sorry about that," she mumbled. "I promise I won't do it again."

She would never forget the rosy red that blossomed over Haru's face.

They began walking back to the dorms hand in hand. They stayed quiet for those minutes, never looking at each other. Haru only ever spoke when they reached the door to her dorm room.

"See you later. And… could you not mention this to Tokaku-san?"

There was no guarantee that it wouldn't slip out at some point, but Haru didn't need to know that. "Nope!" Otoya giggled. "Don't worry, I won't tell her we held hands, either."

Haru squeaked and started to protest, but Otoya had already rushed ahead to her dorm. Teasing Haru would be fun, but she had other things to think about.

It didn't matter that the nature of her feelings had changed. She felt silly for worrying about it so much. So long as Haru still liked her, everything would be all right.

_I don't have to take pleasure from Haru, _she thought. _Haru will give it to me. _As for her wish, they could figure something out in the future. Right now she just wanted the girl by her side.

Therefore, she was going to do something phenomenally crazy.

**HITSUGI**

Hitsugi pulled open the doors to the dorm building. She was lucky Hashiri had such a distinctive voice. If she hadn't overheard that there would be an orientation meeting tonight, she would've been completely out of the loop. Hashiri had probably expected Chitaru to tell her later, not knowing the situation they were in.

She wasn't sure why she cared about this particular lie so much. It was different from most of the others she'd told, because it didn't serve much of a purpose. It didn't help her in any way to win the game; she had told it just to see if she could get away with it.

_I'm testing my poison-making skills, like always. Lies are just another form of poison._

She heard footsteps behind her. Not wanting to get caught up in a conversation, she slunk off into a corner to watch her subjects enter the building.

She could not have been more surprised at the two people who entered. One was Takechi, and the other was Ichinose. Without Azuma or anyone else. They said nothing as they walked down the dormitory hall. The fact that those two were walking together didn't make a lot of sense, but the fact that they were holding hands was even weirder. Takechi wouldn't be stupid enough to try and take the target's life before the orientation meeting, right?

As much as Takechi annoyed her, the girl was craftier than she looked. She was definitely up to something, but this wasn't her assassination attempt.

When the two reached Ichinose's dorm, they waved goodbye, exchanged a few pleasantries, and parted ways. Once Takechi was alone in the hall, Hitsugi slid out of the shadows.

Takechi jumped. "Jeez!" she laughed. "You startled me, Hitsugi-chan."

Laughing a little herself, Hitsugi leaned against the wall. "Aren't you supposed to be an accomplished killer? Don't tell me you can't see people in the dark."

The raven-haired girl bounced over and patted her head. "Well, tiny people like you are harder to see."

"I'm not that short! I'm the same height as Hashiri-san."

"Who said I was talking about height, pipsqueak?"

Hitsugi started for her. "You know, I can do a lot worse to you than yanking your skirt down in front of a bus."

"All right, All right." Takechi grinned and held up her hands. "I won't tease you about how much of a loli you are. What was so interesting about me and Harucchi?"

"Maybe the fact that she wasn't running away from you, screaming for help?" Hitsugi folded her arms. "You aren't exactly the nicest person in the world."

With a sigh Takechi leaned on the wall next to her. "Yeah, I'm pretty horrible. But things aren't that simple for me right now."

Her fatigue looked genuine, so Hitsugi decided to be curious. "What do you mean? Don't tell me Ichinose's really an assassin or something."

"Nope! She's definitely not." Takechi drummed her fingers on the wall. "Well, I guess she might still be, but unless she's as good of a liar as you are, she isn't. Speaking of which," she tilted her head and edged closer in a passive-aggressive manner. "What was up with ditching me for the giant? That wasn't very nice."

"Her name is Chitaru-san," Hitsugi replied irritably, trying to ignore the tapping sound. "And don't you think it's pretty obvious? I can't let people think I'm buddies with a creepy serial killer."

"Are you?" Takechi twirled one of her pigtails around her finger. "I'm not mad, okay? Or, I'd be less mad if you'd ease up a little on the insults."

"Don't you know? I speak only the truth."

They both got a good laugh out of that. Then Hitsugi realized she was laughing with Takechi and promptly shut up.

"Anyway," she coughed. "I've decided to try and convince Chitaru-san that I'm the target."

Takechi's smile quickly turned upside-down. Hitsugi would always be amazed at how she changed moods in the blink of an eye. "You want her to try and kill you?"

"I thought it might be fun to see if I can pull it off," Hitsugi replied, scanning the hallway for anyone who might have been listening to them. "More fun than just killing the target and leaving, at least. As for her trying to kill me, she didn't seem like she wanted to. It looked like she was taking pity on me."

"Doesn't really surprise me. She was one of those princely heroic types." Laughing, Takechi watched the hall with her. "If you wanted to eliminate some competition, you should've gone for someone with some guts. Maybe Azuma or Sagae."

The constant tapping of Takechi's fingers on the wall was driving Hitsugi insane. She smacked the girl's hand. "Will you quit drumming? If you've got that much excess energy, go run a few laps around the building or something."

She sighed with relief at the wonderful silence. Being a poison master, she did her job noiselessly in the dead of night, without much mess involved. That quietness was where she felt most comfortable. It was one reason why she felt calm around Chitaru, who had a softer voice than most of the others.

"I chose Chitaru-san because she's honest and trusting, which Azuma isn't," she said. "I haven't even met Sagae. How do you get to know everybody when nobody wants to talk to you?"

Another high-pitched laugh from the raven-haired girl. "That was rude. People don't have to want to talk to you. You have to walk up to them and start talking about something random, and then you'll kind of get to know them based on how they answer you."

That seemed like a recipe for disaster. "What if they get angry?"

"If they look violent, you back off and tell them you were only trying to be nice. Otherwise you just keep bothering them. Especially ones like Mahiru-chan and Shiena-chan." Takechi giggled. "Shiena-chan has a grudge against bullies, but I'll break her."

Hitsugi shoved her. "You really are awful."

"Hee hee!" Takechi bowed toward her. "Was there ever any doubt?"

"You…" Hitsugi was about to respond when she spotted someone coming toward the dorm building. "Nevermind, somebody's coming. Tell me what happens at the meeting tonight."

"Huh?" Takechi blinked. "You're not going?"

Smiling sweetly, Hitsugi pulled away from the wall. "I'm the target, right? I'm a sweet, clueless little girl who's going to wait in her room with her teddy bear." Her eyes narrowed. "You'd better not tell Chitaru-san."

Takechi shrugged. "I won't. Not now, anyway." She looked at the carpeted floor. "Hey… this might sound weird, but…

"Takechi, everything you say sounds weird."

Hitsugi expected the girl to laugh that one off too, but she didn't. This Takechi looked different from the one she'd encountered thus far. Her eyes, usually confident, were uncertain and turbulent. The closest she'd come to making that expression before had been on the bus when she'd mentioned the people who were after her.

The girl swallowed. "Do you think anyone might… protect the target or something?"

Hitsugi frowned. "Why would you do that? Didn't you say that you really, really needed the prize for killing her? And, y'know, you actually _like _killing people?"

"Well, yeah. But… she's different."

This was just too strange. Takechi was definitely a psycho, but she was at least sort of consistent. On that bus she'd been stoked to kill Haru, and now suddenly she was talking about protecting her. For a development like that to happen so quickly was…

But it wasn't her place to say anything. If it ended up affecting her, she'd ask about it. Until then, she'd stay out of Takechi's business.

That didn't mean she wouldn't express her disapproval, though. "I've thought before that maybe _I _was a little crazy," she said. "But you take the cake."

There was no joking retort, no anger, not even a tiny chuckle from the most playful, giggly girl in the world. Instead she sighed and rubbed her head. "I told you it was complicated. I guess whatever ends up happening, you'll know about it pretty quick. I'll tell you about that meeting, 'kay?" She finally smiled. "Cuz I'm such a sweetheart."

Rolling her eyes, Hitsugi waved her on down the hallway. "I know, I know. Go back to your dorm unless you want me to tell whoever walks in here that you're a lolicon."

Grudgingly, Takechi rushed down the hall to her dorm. Hitsugi couldn't help but notice the dismayed groan that came from the room the second Takechi opened the door. She couldn't blame Kenmochi. If she herself had Takechi to look forward to every day when she got back to her room, she'd be pretty unhappy too.

She'd left just in time, because the glass doors opened right then to admit Sagae and Inukai. The redhead was talking about something and laughing while the pinkette nodded every few minutes and looked rather annoyed in general with Sagae's presence. Hitsugi recalled Takechi's advice about talking to people. Maybe she wasn't quite so strange after all.

She laughed at herself for even thinking that. No matter what sorts of customs arose on planet Earth, Takechi would always be strange.

Spotting her, Sagae waved. "Hey there, Hitsugi-chan! What've you been up to?"

Although Hitsugi hated being talked down to, she was used to it. "Not much," she replied, trying to look as cute as possible, which she knew she was good at. "How about you, Haruki-san?"

Sagae rubbed her head. "Ha ha! Not much either."

From beside her, Inukai grinned and mumbled something that included the word "idiot". She began walking faster so that Sagae had to rush to keep up.

"Bye, Hitsugi-chan!" she called.

There was another odd pair. Sagae was, for all Hitsugi had seen of her, considerate. Inukai was rude but classy, unsympathetic, and despised anyone who stepped inside her three-foot-radius. Everyone except Sagae, apparently. Hitsugi had never believed in the saying "opposites attract", but after seeing Takechi with Ichinose and Inukai with Sagae, she was beginning to have second thoughts.

Her and Chitaru fit the bill too, but since she wasn't being her real self, she couldn't really count them in that group.

Now that all that excitement had passed, she felt tired. Since she wasn't going to that meeting, she could get some rest and not have to worry about waking up for it. If she got enough sleep, she might even be able to wake up for school the next day without an alarm.

She set off for her dorm room, wondering how long she'd be able to keep up her little lie.

**The scene with Otoya and Haru is one I've been working on for weeks, actually, and I'm still not satisfied with it. If anyone has suggestions or criticisms, please let me know. I write Haru kind of weirdly, because it's hard to combine her cute side with her philosophical side. Still fun, though.**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hello! This chapter is where things get started. Thanks to everyone who's still reading this!**

**Chitaru**

Chitaru had seen several of Azuma's unhappy faces in the four and a half days since she'd arrived at Myojou. None of them had been quite this unhappy.

"Azuma-san?" she ventured, walking up to the girl. "Are you all right?"

Azuma acknowledged her existence by glaring at her. "I'm fine," she said, walking even faster. "Just appalled, is all."

With her long legs, Chitaru could easily match her pace. "I saw Haru-san walk off with Takechi-san."

She'd hit the nail on the head, unless Azuma's eyes twitched like that all the time. "I just can't believe her," Azuma sighed, a bit of her anger evaporating. Chitaru noticed that her calmness tended to have that effect on people. That was why she always tried to keep a level head.

"That girl jumped out at us on the first day and tried to suffocate us," Azuma continued, focused on the concrete path ahead. "But now that she's asked Ichinose out for ice cream, suddenly that's all okay? And she _knows _Takechi wants to kill her. That's the part I really don't understand." Her face was fixed in a constant frown, and she never raised her voice. "Is she just… stupid?"

Remembering her conversations with Kirigaya, Chitaru looked at her sympathetically. "I think I might have an explanation."

"How?" Azuma finally lifted her head. "Did you talk to her?"

Chitaru shook her head slowly. "No, but I talked to someone else. Do you remember Kirigaya Hitsugi? She's the small girl."

Azuma's face finally shifted a little. "It would be hard not to remember Kirigaya. What about her?"

"I think…" Chitaru hesitated, knowing Azuma wouldn't be happy to hear what she had to say. "I think she's the target."

"What?" Azuma's eyes widened. "Then you think Ichinose is-!"

"I don't know for sure," Chitaru added quickly, holding up her hand. "But wouldn't that explain why Haru-san is perfectly comfortable being alone with another assassin?"

There was no verbal response from Azuma, but she could feel the girl's tension from a foot away.

"Kirigaya didn't know anything about the black class game," Chitaru sighed. "When I told her about the assassins, she was afraid. I said I wasn't after the target, which made her feel a little better, but not much." She shuddered. Kirigaya's frightened face had burned itself into her memory. It was a face she never wanted to see again.

Having recovered from her initial shock, Azuma put a hand in her skirt pocket. "She could be lying to you just like Takechi is lying to Ichinose. Maybe she wanted less competition for the real target or something."

Chitaru folded her arms. "Would it really be worth that much lying just to eliminate one person? We're meant to believe that Ichinose-san is the target, but since everyone here is lying already, it wouldn't surprise me if this whole game is set up to trick us."

"Then I'll repeat your argument too," Azuma answered. "Would it really be worth going to all this trouble just to trick us?"

Rubbing her head, Chitaru felt more overloaded than she ever had. "Maybe I should've waited for Angel Trumpet to leave this school," she sighed as fatigue settled into her body. "I don't like these kinds of environments where I don't know what's real and what's not. Even if I wouldn't want to know the truth, it's better than being lied to left and right."

They had arrived in a playing field with grass and a baseball diamond. It was late afternoon, so the sun was beginning its long journey down the sky. There was a lot of glare, but the fencing behind the baseball diamond blocked some of it. If not for the perfectly mowed, green grass and the tall buildings in the background, it almost would've looked like a normal school field.

Azuma turned toward her. "I came here to exercise," she said, bending over to stretch her legs. "You can talk while I work."

Chitaru herself liked to go on morning jogs. Maybe she could invite Azuma along. It would be fun, having someone to jog with. A friend to jog with.

She cleared those thoughts out of her head to focus on the topic at hand. "This is what's going through my mind," she began. "Kirigaya is kind, innocent, and unaware of what's going on. She carries on like a normal high schooler would, even if she looks a bit young. Haru-san is different. She's just as kind and innocent, but she's almost too nice. It's like she wants us to think she's the target."

"Hold up," Azuma said, stretching her arm back over her head. "Two seconds ago her friendliness meant she was obviously _not _the target, and now it's supposed to make us think she _is_?"

"You're right, I'm sorry." Chitaru sat down on the grass. "I'm tired, and I'm not thinking straight. I don't like this school or the people in it. I really want to believe Kirigaya. Haru-san just seems suspicious to me."

Brushing away a large stick, Azuma laid down on the grass and began doing leg lifts. "There's a lot about Ichinose that we don't know," she admitted. "But that's true for everyone, so I don't get why you think it's something special."

"Do you remember on the first day before class, when I had to use the bathroom?" Chitaru folded her legs. "I didn't actually have to go."

To her surprise, Azuma didn't look at all confused. "I thought you might've lied about that," she grunted, already onto her seventh leg lift. "Did you eavesdrop on us in the classroom, then?"

Shifting uncomfortably, Chitaru did her best to meet Azuma's eyes. "I don't think you realize how much you changed when you were in that room with Haru-san. When I met you on the sidewalk, you were violent and distrustful. When she talked to you, it was like you softened. In a good way, actually, but it was so different that I wanted to see what would happen if I left you alone.

She played with a few blades of grass. "I don't presume to know everything about you after just meeting you, Azuma-san, but it didn't feel right to me. The atmosphere in there was strange, kind of unsettling. I mean… you told me outright that you weren't even going to pretend to make friends, and then five minutes later you're telling this girl that she smells nice."

"It wasn't supposed to be a compliment," Azuma growled, rolling onto her stomach. "It was just an observation. And we aren't friends, we just talk a bit. Like you and I."

Chitaru's eyes narrowed. "How would you feel if I killed her, then?"

Azuma dug her fingers into the ground and lowered herself into an angry pushup.

"Now," Chitaru said, "how would you feel if _you_ killed her?"

Punching the ground, Azuma rested on her side and glared at the redhead. "None of what you're saying makes any sense. Maybe it's because I'm finally performing a real assassination, but I'm starting to care about things I didn't care about before. Yes, it feels weird, but it's not… supernatural, or whatever you think it is."

Of course people changed. Everyone knew that. Typically though, that change took longer than a few days. "You're probably right," Chitaru replied, plucking the blade of grass. It was like a tiny green sword between her fingertips. "You'll know who the target is by tonight, anyway. In the meantime, I'll be finding out as much as I can about Kirigaya."

"You're not going to the orientation?" Azuma sat upright. "I know you're not playing the game, but don't you want the information?"

"I don't want to be mislead any more than I have to be." Standing up swiftly, Chitaru brushed off her black dress pants. "I'll believe what I can find concrete evidence for, and I'll make sure not to hurt anyone who's innocent."

Azuma's face stiffened. "None of us are innocent."

It was sad but true. Although Chitaru tried not to think about the people she had killed in the past, their spirits stayed with her. She made a point to know all of their names and crimes; she would not allow herself to kill without respect or reason.

"I agree," she said softly. "That's why I like talking with Kirigaya. Her innocence, I mean. And Haru as well, I really do like her as a person.

Tokaku nodded. "Haru, she has this…" She looked up at the sky. "Wounded innocence. I probably shouldn't get on you about wanting to be Kirigaya's friend. We're kind of the same, aren't we? You have Kirigaya, and I have Ichinose."

Chitaru nodded. "We live in a world of death and lies, so when we find that someone or something that gives us a bit of hope, we cling to them for dear life. Even the worst people need to have faith in something."

The blue haired girl looked up at her. "Do you think we're the worst, Namatame?"

A light breeze rustled the grass around them. Those million blades of grass formed a whispering chorus, livening the dead air with their song. A part of the sun shone out from behind a cloud to illuminate the buildings ahead of them. Finally, there was that endless blue sky. Chitaru found herself speechless.

When the moment had passed, she could feel that new air enter her lungs, rejuvenating her. She smiled sadly. "I suppose we aren't. If we were, we wouldn't be allowed to witness so much beauty."

She could see pain in Azuma's expression. The girl looked out at the grassy field, as though she were noticing it for the first time.

"Namatame…" she said slowly. "Don't tell anyone else, but… I've never killed before."

"You haven't?" Chitaru's eyes widened. "Even though you're an-" She stopped herself. "I'm sorry. That should have nothing to do with it."

Azuma seemed thankful for her thoughtfulness. "Ever since I was young, I've been having weird visions. They aren't hallucinations, they're images, the same ones over and over." She grimaced. "And then a voice, saying that I won't be able to kill because someone is watching me."

More surprising than the actual subject was that Azuma was telling her about it at all. It must have really been weighing on her mind.

"So I haven't been able to," Azuma finished, her gaze affixed on the cloud covering most of the sun. "In case you're wondering why I told you that, it's not because I need help or someone to confide in. What I want is for you to understand why me not wanting to kill Ichinose isn't surprising."

Her eyes narrowed. "Back at 17 Academy, before I came to Myojou, I looked at myself in the mirror and said over and over again, 'I just have to kill her'. 'I just have to kill her'. It didn't seem like a big deal at all. Now that I'm here, I feel something pulling me away from all that."

"You said it earlier, didn't you?" Chitaru patted her shoulder. "You're human. Everyone feels that way about killing. At least, all good people do."

"But I'm not a good person," Azuma answered. "I would _rather_ be able to kill without thinking about it."

"Is that what you think is expected of you?"

Azuma threw her hands in the air. "I don't know what the hell is expected of me! If Kaiba could make one bit of god damn sense, ever, then maybe I'd have some idea. From the way he talks, it seems like he doesn't expect anything at all!"

She took a deep breath and let it out. "My family has caused more people more pain than I can count, and I have to follow in their footsteps. My own name is a curse." Her fingers curled into a ball. "I've been training all my life to do one thing, and I can't do it. When you talk about the way I am with Ichinose, it just reminds me that I'm incompetent."

Chitaru wasn't sure what she could say to help a girl like Azuma Tokaku. "I'm sorry," she said, looking down at her. "I won't pretend to know what that feels like. I can give you a piece of advice, if you want it. It's something my mentor used to say to me."

Folding her arms, Azuma glanced up at her. "You might as well."

"A lot of people say that once you pick a path to go down, you can't go back. But what they don't tell you is that all of the paths cross each other. There are many opportunities to change course." Chitaru thought of her mentor, a kind woman so full of life that one wouldn't expect her to be an assassin. "If you want, you can even pave your own path. The important thing is to keep moving forward and to not let anyone else pick your path for you."

The corners of Azuma's mouth turned upward, possibly for the first time in years. "You sound like an old lady."

"Kirigaya does say I look older than fifteen," Chitaru laughed nervously. "The truth is, I'm seventeen."

"You know what she meant by that, right?"

The redhead smiled. "I drank a lot of milk when I was younger. That probably did it."

Azuma winced. "I always hated milk."

The two of them ended up sitting in the field talking for an hour as the sun dropped lower in the sky. Soon the reality of their situation would be upon them, but for an hour they could set that all aside. For an hour, they could just be friends.

**NIO**

Nio inserted the last brightly colored plug into its outlet and watched as the gigantic wall monitor lit up in a flash of bright light. Turning on the monitor always brought her an odd satisfaction. Soon she would be at the command of a massive, slightly intimidating display, revealing important information to the participants in the black class game.

She was technically a participant herself, but she would take care not to remind the other students of that little fact. It was better if they feared her without knowing why. This was assuming anybody feared her in the first place, but a few of them would have to, right? She had such a devilish smile, after all.

Pulling out her remote, she switched the monitor to a black screen so she could make the room explode in eerie light once everyone had arrived. She couldn't wait to see the looks on their faces.

The door to the warehouse creaked open. "Hello?" someone called. "Is this the place?"

"Hi!" Nio shouted, waving. "Yep, you made it!"

Shutou and Kaminaga stepped through the door. It wasn't surprising that they had arrived first. The two of them seemed like very polite, punctual people.

"Are there any chairs?" Shutou asked, scanning the room. "And is there any way to light up the room? It's a little hard to see."

"Don't worry." Nio put her hands on her hips. "It'll be real bright soon enough. There're a few chairs over there. Good thing you arrived first!"

As Shutou settled down into a chair, Nio couldn't help but notice that she looked physically tired. Mentally she seemed fine, but her legs were shaking a bit. It could've been her imagination, though.

Kaminaga folded her arms and stood right where she was. Apparently Miss Class Rep didn't need a chair.

The next to enter was Hanabusa, who got some odd looks from the other two girls, but no questions. It was probably less the girl herself and more the random man behind her carrying a giant fancy chair that drew their eyes. Nio chuckled. Sooner or later they would get used to Hanabusa's eccentricities.

The other assassins arrived in groups of one or two and either dragged chairs over or opted to stand. There were Kenmochi, Takechi, Inukai and Sagae, and finally Azuma. Somehow Nio wasn't surprised that Namatame and Kirigaya didn't show up. Banba's absence was a little less expected, but not by much. A girl who couldn't even talk to people wouldn't want to attend a meeting. She'd have to get the details from her roommate later.

Glancing at her watch, Nio decided not to wait any longer. All the girls in the room looked excited or nervous, with the exception of the ones who looked constantly bored.

She grinned. It was time to set the ball rolling.

"Thank you for joining me tonight!" she said loudly, taking her place in front of the big black screen. "I express my gratitude to you for not making any attempts on the target's life before this meeting. As you were told, this is where we'll cover the rules!"

Satisfied with that introduction, Nio whipped out her remote with a flourish. "Okay! Let's get started!"

She pressed a button on her remote and the screen burst to life, casting blue-green light over everyone in the room. A hexagonal picture of Ichinose Haru appeared. Even on the big screen, her round face was guileless and pure.

"If anyone was confused," she said, gesturing grandly toward the screen, "the target is none other than Ichinose Haru!"

A few people smiled.

"The one to assassinate the target will be given anything she wants!" Nio continued, meeting every girl's eyes in turn. "Just make the wish, kill the target, and it's yours!"

Walking toward the side of the screen, she held out her index finger. "Of course, a game has to have rules! There are four rules to the black class game."

From the audience, Kenmochi frowned and opened her mouth to speak. Then she closed it again, eyeing Nio suspiciously.

"Rule number one!" The screen went black again so that only bright white text was visible. "Before attacking the target, you have to send them an advance notice!"

Nio held out a single red letter with a gold insignia. "Each of you will get one, count it, _one _advance notice! Once you submit it to the target, it's a free for all!"

From her old plastic chair, Shutou raised her hand. "What happens if two people submit their notice at the same time?"

"That's a-okay! If two people wanna do a joint attack, or if it happens by accident, no problem! But remember…" Nio grinned. "Only one of you can win."

She flicked her wrist and several more notices appeared from behind the first one, creating a fan of them in her hand. She'd practiced that trick. The assassins walked up one by one and took a notice, each giving her a different expression in return.

There were no more questions, so she moved to the next slide on the monitor. "Rule number two! Once you submit your advance notice, you have forty-eight hours to kill the target! Whatever methods you use are fine, as long as you stay within the time limit!"

Another slide. "Rule number three! You aren't allowed to involve anyone from outside the black class! That includes Mizorogi-sensei."

Some of the assassins laughed a little. Mizorogi was about as offensive as a potted daisy on a sunny windowsill, and almost as shrewd. It would take some serious work to incorporate him into an assassination attempt.

"Excuse me!" Kenmochi finally piped up. "But aren't there supposed to be just three rules?"

"Huh?" Nio turned to look at her. "What made you think that?"

The brunette looked uncomfortable. She stepped back behind a few other girls and kept her mouth shut for good.

She was right, though. In the past, there had been only three rules to the game, along with the final rule. This time though, the chairwoman- the entire clan, really- had opted to make things a bit different. Nio felt especially proud, because the new rule had been her own idea.

The big issue, however, was how Kenmochi could have known about the number of rules in the first place. Nio would have to peek into her file later. She'd run into good hackers, but anyone who could hack into Myojou's databases was worth keeping an eye on.

The audience was waiting for her to continue. "Rule number four!" She punched her remote with undisguised enthusiasm. "When you give your notice to the target, _all_ other assassins will be notified of the target's location!"

Nobody moved. It was like the whole room had just done a double take.

_That's the reaction I was hoping for, _Nio thought, letting her true smile reveal itself.

"You heard it right!" she said, watching their eyes widen. "When you send that notice, everybody else knows you're making your move. And as you've already noticed, there's no rule against killing the other assassins."

Takechi's eyes widened. "Seriously? So when you try and kill the target, everyone else knows and gets a chance to save her."

"Exactly!" Nio clasped her hands behind her back. "Normally you'd just go first and get the target before anyone else, right? But you can't do that this time! The earlier you make your attempt, the more people you'll have breathing down your neck."

"Why, though?" Inukai scowled. "What's the point of that?"

Nio leaned forward. "The point is, if you want to kill the target, you'd better have a damn good plan. There are plenty of ways to get around rule number four, if you think about it."

She held out her arms. "We're offering you anything you want! The chance of a lifetime! Did you think it was going to be easy?"

No one spoke for a little bit. It was Kaminaga who finally spoke up from beside Shutou.

"If that's the case, I suspect Ichinose Haru is also not what she seems."

"Oho!" Nio pointed at Kaminaga. "We've got a smart one here! Don't expect to have an easy time killing Haru. That girl is a lot tougher than she looks."

A few girls parted to make way for Azuma, who walked right up to Nio. She looked down at the shorter girl, calm on the outside but obviously hiding something.

Nio grinned cordially. "Yes, Tokaku-san?"

The blue haired girl frowned. "How do you know so much about Ichinose?"

She had wondered if she'd get this question. Azuma was both observant and suspicious, which made her hard to trick but easy to confuse.

"I'm the class arbitrator," she replied, shrugging. "I know some things other people don't know."

"You two seem like you know each other," Azuma growled. "And you're always looking on that weird tablet. I know you're up to something."

There were a few nods of agreement from the others, most notably from Kenmochi and Inukai. The majority showed no opinion, but kept watching to see what would happen.

"May I interject?"

From her fancy chair, Hanabusa had listened the entire time without commenting or emoting. Now she smiled demurely and held up her hand. "In a company," she said, "there are certain levels of clearance. The smaller employees have access to less information, the managers have more, and so on. I don't believe Hashiri-san is trying to trick us so much as hide information that is beyond your clearance level."

One could almost imagine a cup of fine tea in her hand. "You'll find this hierarchy at every level of society. And you've only been here five days. I'm sure it's nothing to be worried about."

Azuma was about to protest when none other than Takechi grabbed her shoulder and pulled her back.

"Just let things happen, Tokaku," she said cheerily. "Besides, don't you kinda like this setup?"

The two locked eyes. Nio wasn't sure what sorts of emotions passed between them right then, but they weren't nice ones. She chuckled, wondering if those two would butt heads anytime soon. It would be fun to watch.

Takechi's hand was swatted away like a disgusting insect. "Don't touch me," Tokaku said angrily. "Even you have to see that something weird is going on with her. If her attitude around Ichinose is the result of something trivial, shouldn't she be able to explain it rather than being all secretive?"

_I'd be perfectly fine with telling you, _Nio thought. _I just don't think you'd want to hear it._

"Alright, how about this?" She switched back to the screen with Haru's face and smiled at Azuma. "If you win this game, I'll tell you everything you want to know. Is that fair?"

Clenching her fist, Azuma took a step forward. "None of this is fair. Maybe not even for the assassins, and definitely not for-"

To everyone's surprise, even Nio's, Takechi grabbed Azuma by the wrist and ran out of the warehouse. It happened so fast that nobody had time to react until the warehouse doors banged shut. A few seconds later there was a metallic crash.

"Um…" Nio laughed nervously. She was thankful that the disruption had quite literally left the room, but she kind of hoped Azuma and Takechi weren't killing each other out there. "Okay, I guess that's fine. They already have their advance notices."

She focused on the remaining assassins, all of whom looked uncertain where they had been been confident a few minutes ago. "Hey, don't look so down! Like I said, there are still plenty of ways to win! That's why you get forty-eight hours. Instead of relying on your superior strength and skill, you'll have to use your brains." She tapped her head to illustrate her point.

"What if we fail to kill the target?"

The question had come from Sagae, and it had been on everyone's mind.

"If you violate any of the rules," Nio replied. "You'll be expelled."

It wasn't a coincidence that she neglected to specify what being "expelled" entailed. She wanted to keep them wondering for as long as possible.

"Okay!" she said, pressing the power button and turning off the massive screen. "Secret orientation meeting dismissed! The game starts tomorrow, so get some sleep!"

Even as she said that, she was well aware that none of the girls would be getting all the sleep they wanted tonight. Neither would Nio, from sheer excitement.

She watched everyone file out of the building to return to their dormitories. She herself would return in a little while, but she expected to get a message from the chairwoman within the next five minutes. Despite the fact that she was constantly watching everything that happened with the class, the woman still felt the need to check in. Nio was secretly thankful for it. It was nice to hear a friendly voice.

Sure enough, her tablet beeped from where she'd left it beside the screen. When she answered the message, the chairwoman's face appeared not on the tablet, but on the massive screen. The sudden brightness blinded her for a second before she got her bearings.

"Hello, Nio-san."

The sound played out of the speaker on her tablet, not the large computer. That happened sometimes. "Hi," Nio laughed, blinking the floating color blotches out of her eyes and picking up the tablet, since that's where the actual camera was. "Is there anything you want to ask about?"

The chairwoman smiled. "You know the first question I'll always ask."

Nio waved her hand dismissively. "I'm fine! Everything's going well. There were a few no-shows at the meeting, but I'm sure they have a reason for it."

"Did you make a friend?"

Again with the friends. "Nope," she replied. "That's not really why I'm here, though."

"I suppose it isn't," the chairwoman sighed, leaning on her chair. "It's important to have acquaintances, at least. I'm not saying you should truly open up to anyone, but knowing and relating to others will get you far in the real world."

Now she had the bored look again, but it was the special "laid-back and tired" look that she only had around her closest associates. If not for the crisp suit and white collared shirt, she could've been a student herself. She had been, years ago.

"It's not my fault," Nio said, folding her arms. "All people do is lie to each other. And you make friends more easily than most other people, chairwoman."

The brunette sat up a little straighter. "That's true. I've never had trouble making friends. How has Haru-san been doing?"

It was a mystery why the chairwoman cared so much about her own opinion on these things, but Nio was happy to give it. "So far it's been interesting," she answered. "I could tell you more if you'd give me some more info about-"

"Nio-san, why are you looking upward?"

Nio blinked. "Huh? Your video appeared on the big screen by accident. I forgot to unplug my-"

She realized her mistake. Leaning over, she pulled the plug out of the computer tower.

The large screen flickered and went black. Nio looked down and saw that the chairwoman's image had reappeared on her tablet.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, glancing around. "I can't believe I did something that dumb."

The chairwoman was unhappy, but not angry. "We requested that the best young assassins be entered into this class," she said quietly. "Because of that, I wouldn't be surprised if someone were watching us now, just as I watch them. Unless you're in your own dormitory or my command center, please use the tablet and headphones."

Rarely did Nio feel ashamed, but the feeling splashed over her like cold water. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out her earbuds and plugged them in. If one of her class members had seen the chairwoman, she would have to think up a believable explanation.

"Okay," she said, giving a quick salute. "I'm ready."

The chairwoman nodded. "You were in the middle of asking about Haru-san's powers, weren't you? I thought I explained them to you earlier. She and I have the ability to make others like us. Beyond that, we make people listen to and protect us. It's a defense mechanism that some of us are born with."

"By 'us', you mean-"

"Please don't reference the true nature of the game, Nio-san. I'm willing to answer your question here, but we don't want to give away our big reveal." The chairwoman chuckled. "I sound like a movie director."

She was a director, in a way. While Nio didn't enjoy being cut off in the middle of her sentences, this must have been a very important secret, so she resolved to keep her mouth shut. There was nothing more thrilling than having someone else's secret in your arsenal.

"I was expecting Haru-san to pick up one or two friends very quickly," the brunette continued. "It's in her nature to acquire protectors. Her old family and friends are perfect examples."

She uncrossed her legs and crossed them again the other way. "The new rule you came up with, however, has complicated that a bit. Now that everyone is in a position to protect her, it will be harder to track her progress."

"Sorry." Nio shrugged weakly. "The circumstances were different this time, though."

"Yes, they were. With the added requirement, your rule is just what we needed. I wasn't trying to insult it."

Nio knew she was beginning to blush. "Thanks," she said, turning away from the screen to collect herself. "This whole thing is a little strange for me. I really like the job, but once it's over..." Then there would be her next job, the one she was worried about.

"I understand a bit of how you feel," the chairwoman said. "I'm sure Haru-san would as well, but I don't expect that you'll talk to her about it."

Right, Haru. That's who she was supposed to be talking about. "It looks like Haru has been making friends, like you said. There are a few people in particular."

That piqued the chairwoman's interest. "Yes, that's right. Azuma and Takechi-san. Azuma-san was expected, being her roommate and an inexperienced killer, but Takechi-san was surprising." She put her hand on her chin. "She must have wandered into Haru-san's aura by accident."

Nio wanted to ask about this "aura", but there was little she could say without tipping off potential observers to their plot. "Maybe," she said, then grinned harshly. "I wonder if Haru will be able to survive through the power of friendship."

"Bravo," the chairwoman laughed quietly, golf-clapping. "You've become quite a good actor, Nio-san. Even I might have thought you really meant that."

What the chairwoman couldn't see was the shadow that Nio had just spotted outside one of the warehouse windows. The window was cracked glass, with several holes and a few lazily placed boards. Anyone skilled at eavesdropping would be able to hear their entire conversation.

She was suddenly very thankful that they had decided to use the tablet and headphones, and also slightly sick to her stomach. It didn't matter how little they had said- whoever was there had definitely seen the chairwoman.

"That's it then!" she said. "I'll keep working."

The chairwoman frowned. It was clear she understood what had just happened. "You said nothing they wouldn't have figured out on their own, so don't worry. As for me, I'm sure you'll think of something. Meet me in my office so we can have a real conversation, all right?"

"Yep!" Nio saluted. She hung up and took a deep breath. Pushing herself away from the wall, she stepped out into the middle of the room. Part of her really wanted to let whoever was spying on her know that she'd seen them, but there would be no point in that. If they knew she had seen, they'd suspect that Nio had been acting.

Ah, everything was so complicated. That was her favorite thing about being class arbitrator. As long as she was more careful in the future, she could control the flow of information and mould the class to her liking.

She couldn't help but laugh as she walked out the door and headed for the chairwoman's office. This was going to be fun.

**TOKAKU**

"What the hell are you doing?!" Tokaku growled as she was jerked out of the warehouse. "Let me go!"

Takechi grinned. "In a second! Let's get a little further from the building."

Gritting her teeth, Tokaku pulled a knife out of her sleeve. "If you don't want me to cut your arm off," she hissed, "you'll let go right now!"

Takechi planted her feet and swung her into a trash can. The blue haired girl crashed into the hard metal and rolled to her feet. The resulting clang pounded in her ears as she readied her knife to attack.

"Relax," Takechi snickered. "Why would I hurt you? You're not even cute."

Flicking a piece of trash off her uniform, Tokaku stood and held Takechi at knifepoint. "I might be a little more trusting if you hadn't just dragged me out of a building and thrown me into a trash can!"

The other girl shifted left to right, like she was admitting that maaaybe that was a fair point. Why did Tokaku keep running into the ones she hated?

Lowering her knife a little, she shoved Takechi back a few feet. "If physicality is the only way you communicate with people, okay. Just stay away from me and say your piece."

"Fine, fine." Takechi kept her distance, which was surprising. "It has to do with Harucchi- I mean, Ichinose."

She'd said it that way on purpose to be annoying. "Everything has to do with Ichinose at this point," Tokaku said. "Just spit it out."

"Well, I was thinking…" Takechi folded her arms. "Harucchi's a pretty special person. She kinda caught me off guard." That insidious smile crept onto her face like the spider she was. "I think you know what I mean."

The infuriating part was that Tokaku _did_ know exactly what she meant. "You might have tricked Ichinose," she said, "but you won't trick me. I don't know how the hell she missed it, but you're a horrible person."

Takechi wasn't fazed in the slightest. "I know!" she said, inching closer. "I like being horrible. You should try it sometime."

Tokaku felt like grabbing that awful face and ripping it off, but she restrained herself. "It doesn't matter," she said, her hand going back to her knife. "Even if we both don't want to kill Ichinose, we still have to..."

Her voice gave out on her all of a sudden. The mere thought of hurting Ichinose was sickening. What other choice did she have, though?

There was one other choice, the one she'd thought of on her first day at the academy.

But she couldn't do that, right?

The raven-haired girl watched her inner toil from the outside, as though observing an insect caught in a web. More than most other things, Tokaku hated having her mind toyed with.

"I don't get this," she breathed. "I've known her for less than a week! Why is this happening?"

"So you do get it!" Takechi said happily, reaching to grab her shoulders but shrinking back when she remembered the knife.

She folded her arms. "We both feel the same way, even though we're completely different. Isn't that amazing?" She shivered. "Which is how I know we've both come up with the same solution."

Tokaku's eyes widened. "The same solution?"

"Yep." Takechi danced around her, popping in and out of the shadows. "You had a plan to protect Harucchi from the others, right? So did I. And thanks to this new rule, we won't stand out while we're doing it."

Keeping an eye on the girl's movements, Tokaku steadied her breathing like her Aunt Mako had taught her. A good killer could sense fear in their target, and Takechi seemed to thrive on it. "If the others realize that we're never going to attack Ichinose," she said in a low voice, "they might try to take us out."

Takechi rolled her eyes. "Those girls? I've talked with all of them. Most of them wouldn't have the guts." She laughed. "I could cut them all to pieces before they'd have the nerve to pull out a gun."

"You're disgusting," Tokaku answered. "And if you aren't afraid of the others, why did you drag me out here to tell me this?"

"I needed to make sure we were on the same page." Takechi appeared behind her and backed her into the warehouse wall. "If we both have the same goal, we should be allies, right? Organizing an alliance isn't something you do in front of a crowd."

Tokaku did want to protect Ichinose. She could deny it all she wanted, but it was there, begging to be noticed. Why should she have to do what Kaiba told her? The bastard hadn't done a damn thing for her, and it wasn't like she had a wish.

_At the very least, _she thought, _I have to protect her from Takechi. _

Turning around, she looked up at the raven-haired girl. "You're right," she said. A forced smile etched itself into her features. "I do want to protect her. As much as I would hate to praise you in any way, shape, or form, I have to thank you for making me realize that."

Eyes alight, the raven-haired girl grabbed her hands. "Great!" she said. "Then we've got a truce?"

Her grip was like iron, and Tokaku found herself with a pretty good idea of the kinds of murders Takechi committed.

She ripped her hands away and kicked her hard in the stomach, dropping her to the ground. Takechi landed in a plume of dust and somersaulted backward, reaching for something at her waist.

Putting her knife away, Tokaku stepped back from the scene. "That said…" she closed her eyes. "There's no way I can work with you."

From her crouching position, Takechi was forced to look up at her. "Is that really what you think?"

Tokaku nodded. "Yes. Even if you do actually want to protect Ichinose, you're the kind of person who hurts people." Her eyes narrowed. "I don't forgive as easily as she does."

"Ha ha…" Takechi got to her feet with something metal in her hand. It was whatever she'd pulled from her waistband. "Well, I didn't really wanna work with you either. I thought Harucchi would rather have you alive than in little pieces, but I guess I don't have a choice!"

She swung at Tokaku with a pair of gleaming scissors. They sliced through the darkness like the claws of a demon, making Tokaku jump back. The end of her tie fluttered to the ground.

This girl was insane. Really, truly insane, and Tokaku had made her really mad. Those weird green eyes were almost glowing with rage.

Seeing no other option, she pulled out her knife again. "Look," she said, edging away. "I definitely don't like you, but I haven't known you for long enough to hate you this much. We don't have to kill each other. We can work toward a common goal without cooperating."

She saw no sign that anything was getting through to Takechi. The girl cackled and ran the dull end of her scissors across her lips. "That's not the way I think about stuff," she purred, positioning herself to fight. "The way I see it, you want to get in my way. Even if we go our own separate routes and both survive, in the end it'll be the two of us and Harucchi. If this is gonna happen anyway, may as well get it out of the way now!"

She lunged in a flash of brown and black, ready to catch her prey in her jaws.

Then they both heard a loud click.

Tokaku clutched her knife tightly. She'd been ready to block Takechi's attack when she saw the gun being pressed to her opponent's head.

Takechi stood frozen in place, only turning her head a little to see who had intervened.

Neither could have been more surprised to find Kenmochi standing there. Granted, she looked like she might wet herself, but she stood firm nonetheless.

"Really?" she said angrily, glaring at them both. "You're _already _trying to kill each other?"

Shoving her knife back into its holder for the last time, Tokaku held up her hands. "I didn't start the fight, all right? Takechi did."

Kenmochi stared Takechi down, pressing the gun harder into her temple. "Give me the scissors," she said slowly.

The voice that replied was sickeningly sweet. "You don't mean that, Shiena-chan."

"Only one person has to die in this stupid game." Kenmochi swallowed. "But if you want to add yourself to the list, that's fine by me."

Although she tried not to look at the deranged smile on Takechi's face, Tokaku found herself staring at the scene in front of her. This could go several different ways. Kenmochi had the gun, but she obviously hadn't used it before. Takechi was in an extremely vulnerable position, but she was clinically insane.

"I get it," Takechi said snaking her hand up Kenmochi's arm. "You hate bullies, right Shiena-chan? But I wasn't bullying Tokaku. I was removing an obstacle."

Kenmochi grinned shakily. "Normal people are smart enough to find their way _around _the obstacles."

Now she'd done it. Tokaku debated whether she should run away or watch this play out. She did owe Kenmochi on a certain level, but hanging around Takechi when she was like this was stupid.

The thing that had stopped the fight a few seconds ago had been a distraction. If she could find a good one, she might be able to stop this fight too.

As it turned out, the universe was on her side for once. A bright light shone out a hole in one of the warehouse windows, forming a line of pale blue that separated Tokaku from the other two.

"What the hell?" Takechi grumbled, turning toward the window. "Is this what that big screen looks like from outside?"

"Yeah, when it's displaying bright colors." Kenmochi frowned. "But it should be off. Everyone left while you two were messing around back here."

The three girls exchanged glances. Tokaku and Kenmochi's eyes quickly settled on Takechi, who still had a gun at her head.

"All right, all right…" The raven-haired girl shoved the scissors back down her skirt. "This isn't over."

Tokaku stayed several steps away from her. "Believe me, I know."

"Good." Bending over, Kenmochi peered through the dirty window. "Be quiet."

The other two bent over on either side of her, making sure there was absolutely no contact between them. Tokaku wished she'd never have to see the freak again, but if the two of them were protecting Ichinose, it wouldn't be easy.

Inside the warehouse was Hashiri, standing in front of the giant monitor. Instead of still images or messages, it displayed a massive live video feed of some woman in a suit. She was sitting in a business chair in front of a honeycomb structure.

"Holy crap," Takechi whispered, pressing her head into Kenmochi's for a better look. "Who's that?"

"How should I know?" Kenmochi growled as she was squished between the two of them. "Now shut up and listen!"

"...I could tell you some more if you'd give me some more info about-"

It was Hashiri talking, presumably to the woman on the screen. Tokaku could see that woman's mouth moving, but her words were too quiet to hear, and it was hard to read her lips.

The screen turned off rather suddenly, leaving them all in pitch blackness. Tokaku cursed and waited for her eyes to adjust.

She heard Takechi's voice from far too close. "She's using her tablet now. She's putting in headphones."

"You can see?" Tokaku whispered incredulously.

"That's nothing," Kenmochi muttered, trying to shrug off Takechi's arms from around her shoulders. "Last night she stayed up reading guro in the dark and left it open on the nightstand."

"Did I do that?" Takechi snickered. "Whoopsie."

Kenmochi smacked her head. "Not so loud! They're talking about important, secret information in there! Do you want to miss all of it?"

Tokaku and Takechi shushed her in unison. With a sigh, she pressed her face to the window while Takechi clung to her.

At least Tokaku could still hear in the dark. Hashiri said "Okay, I'm ready" and was silent for a while. If she had put in headphones like Takechi said, they would only be able to hear her side of the conversation. That could be problematic.

They sat and listened for the next few minutes to Hashiri's short, infrequent remarks. Whoever was on the other side was doing most of the talking.

"By 'us', you mean-"

"Sorry. The circumstances were different this time, though."

"Thanks. This whole thing is a little strange for me. I really like the job, but once it's over..."

It sounded like Hashiri was worried about something. Now that her eyes had adjusted, Tokaku could read a bit of her body language. The "job" must have been black class arbitrator. Maybe she wasn't sure what to do with herself afterward.

No. It couldn't be that simple, not here. There was something actively troubling that Hashiri would have to do after the class ended. Anything that could make Hashiri nervous couldn't be good.

"It looks like Haru has been making friends, like you said. There are a few people in particular."

Now she was talking about Ichinose, once again by her first name. Those two knew each other, and the woman in the suit knew both of them. If Hashiri was class arbitrator, and she was talking with a business-like woman…

Was that woman in charge of the black class?

She heard Hashiri laugh and refocused on the blonde girl. "Maybe. I wonder if Haru will be able to survive through the power of friendship."

She wished she could punch the little imp for saying that, but it would be the wrong thing to do. Beside her, Kenmochi was shaking her head.

"It's no good," the brunette whispered. "They know someone's watching."

Takechi squeezed her. "How do you know?"

"I'm a drama geek," she replied, squirming out of Takechi's grasp. "I know what acting sounds like. That's why Hashiri is pausing for so long. They're exchanging all the real information where we can't hear it."

Sighing, Tokaku backed away from the window. "Then we can't trust anything they say."

Kenmochi looked apologetic. "Don't dismiss it, but don't take it as the truth either." She straightened up and stashed her gun in her bookbag. "I'm going to bed. C'mon, Takechi-san."

Where Takechi might've clung to Ichinose earlier, she was now stuck to Kenmochi like a leech. "Bye bye!" she giggled, giving Tokaku a little wave. She smiled nastily. "You might wanna sleep with one eye open from now on."

When they were gone, Tokaku felt her legs shake under her. This was too much for one night.

The warehouse doors banged open. Tokaku instinctively ducked behind the trashcan to watch Hashiri leave. It would only take a few seconds, and she wanted to see what the blonde would do.

Hashiri showed no signs of knowing anyone was still outside the warehouse. She walked down the concrete path away from the dormitories. Tokaku stood at her full height and watched as Hashiri got to the end of that path, unlocked a glass door, and entered the skyscraper that marked the center of the Myojou campus.

If she hadn't been so exhausted, Tokaku might have followed. Right then she needed sleep, and anything she had tried to do would have failed. Besides, Ichinose was alone in their dorm room, and the game started tomorrow morning. She would need to be there.

Sighing, she glanced at the skyscraper one last time and made her way to the dorms.

**This ended up being a long chapter. Fitting character development with plot and not making it boring is hard!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey there! We're getting closer to the first attempt with each chapter, so please bear with me. I hope each chapter is entertaining on its own. :) **

**Suzu**

Suzu woke up with her heart beating fast. Those images were still fresh in her mind, ones she thought she had forgotten long ago. Her dreams were a gallery of mixed-up memories, all tossed together like salad. Mother's smile, father's broad shoulders, the back of that boy's head in the distance… and the other girl next to him.

She touched her cheek and was surprised to find wetness there. Even though she had blocked out her emotions many times, her body didn't lie.

Blinking away her tears, she sat up in bed and saw that she had plenty of time to get ready for school. Naturally, Kouko had already been up for an hour at least. She was a punctual person with an inflexible routine. Suzu would have found that boring, but watching Kouko be so dignified was kind of cool.

Kouko noticed that she had woken up. "Good morning," she said blandly. Her hair was still down, a sign that she had been working on something. After what Nio had told them last night, they had been restless. No one was quite sure what would be the best strategy for winning the game.

_The way I see it, _Suzu thought, _the best thing would be to team up._

By teaming up, they would have less opposition from the other assassins, not to mention more firepower and more brainpower. The problem was, of course, that only one person could win.

Hashiri had made it clear that there were ways around that, though. With that in mind, Suzu pushed herself out of bed and got her uniform. "Good morning."

As she was about to start changing, Kouko turned toward her and frowned. "Why are you crying?"

Was it that obvious? Suzu rubbed her face a little more vigorously. "I was remembering something very sad," she sighed. "Don't pay any attention to it." She had seen Kouko in tears as well, so now they were even.

Her roommate obeyed, but still looked concerned. It was the first time Suzu had seen that sort of expression on her.

Suzu was glad her classmates had started talking to her. Talking to other people had allowed her to escape from herself. She suspected Kouko and Shiena felt the same way.

They really were the odd ones out in the class. All of the other assassins were instantly recognizable for their appearances, personalities, or backgrounds. They, on the other hand, looked and acted far more normally.

She chuckled as she straightened the plaid collar of her uniform. She'd never thought of herself as normal by any stretch.

Kouko stood waiting by the door with a book in hand, like she did every morning. Since Kouko entered a world of her own when she was reading, it was pointless to try and chat with her. Suzu got herself looking nice for class and bided her time until seven forty-five.

Their walk to the cafeteria for breakfast felt different than it had a few days ago. Back then, everyone could pretend they were normal students. Now that the game had officially started, and thrown a wrench into everyone's plans in the process, all the assassins were on edge.

"Hey there, Harucchi!"

The shout came from a few paces to the left, where Takechi had run up to Haru and lifted her up in the air. The resulting giggles drew one nasty scowl from Azuma. That was no surprise, considering how Takechi had dragged her out of the meeting last night. She wondered what had happened out there. She knew that Shiena had snuck over to do something about it, against Suzu and Kouko's better judgement. They'd have to ask her at breakfast.

"Look at them," Kouko grumbled. "Azuma-san and Takechi-san both fawning over the target. It's a recipie for disaster."

"I have to agree," Suzu replied, putting her hands behind her head and stretching. "I wouldn't say Azuma is really fawning over her, but..."

"She glares," Kouko finished for her. "Affectionate glaring."

They looked at each other for a moment. "Wow," Suzu laughed. "That's just perfect. 'Affectionate glaring'. We'll have to tell Shiena-chan that one."

Suzu pulled open the door to the cafeteria and found the table where Shiena sat by herself, working on a laptop that looked nearly as old as she was.

"Morning," she said, sitting down across from the brunette. "What're you working on?"

"Oh! Morning." Shiena glanced up from the screen. "Just, uh, doing some digging around."

Pulling out her chair soundlessly, Kouko sat beside Suzu. "By which you mean hacking?"

"Shhh!" Shiena put her finger to her lips. "I'm used to having a manga café or something. Here, this is the best I can get. All the dorms have security cameras."

It was an odd feeling, being watched all the time. "What makes you think here would be better?" Suzu asked.

The brunette closed her laptop with a click. "My reasoning is that she expects us to do our secret business in our rooms, so this place won't be as thoroughly watched. Also," she gestured toward the dozens of other students, "plenty of sound pollution."

Kouko shrugged. "It's a fair point. Just be careful."

"Don't worry," Shiena grinned. "I'm used to this. Also, can you get me something to eat? I've been here since before they were serving, and I forgot to grab anything."

Nodding, Suzu stood up and pointed at the food counter. "I'll get everyone's. You want a traditional breakfast, right Kouko-san?"

"Yes, please. Thank you."

Always polite. Suzu smiled and went to get enough food for all of them. She probably looked like a big eater to the others in line, but she had long since learned to ignore others' impressions of her.

She was back in around seven minutes, according to the clock on the wall. Kouko and Shiena were talking about _Carmen_, and whether the book or the opera was better.

"I'm back," she announced, setting each plate in front of its recipient. Shiena grabbed a napkin and went to town, while Kouko picked up a fork and started on her vegetables like a good girl.

Now it was time to bring up the thing everyone was afraid to talk about. "Guys," Suzu said, "What happened last night was a big surprise for all of us, right?"

Swallowing a large bite of pancake, Shiena sighed. "I'll say. How's anyone ever going to succeed when all the others get a chance to stop them? The one thing to do would be a team up, but she said only one person can win. Where does that leave us?"

Suzu folded her arms. "It still leaves us with a team up. I think I know how we can get around the one person winning rule."

With that, she had their attention. Possibly the attention of the next table over as well, where Inukai and Sagae had gotten a bit quieter.

Her roommate stared down at her food. "I'm sure you have a good idea," Kouko said quietly. "But if I don't do this on my own, it won't mean anything."

"And if you lose," Shiena said, frowning, "it'll mean even less." She nodded toward Suzu. "Tell us your idea, Suzu-san."

Once she was positive the other two were not listening in on their conversation, Suzu lowered her voice. "If we find a way to combine our wishes," she whispered, "then we can each make a single wish that accounts for everybody. No matter who wins in the end, we'll all get what we wanted.

"That would mean we'd have to tell each other our wishes," she continued. "We'd have to be able to confide in each other. Can we do that?"

The other two glanced at each other. "We can try," Kouko said, adjusting her glasses. "If we're going to work together, we should have a meeting. How about after school in Shutou-san's and my room?"

"Sounds good." Suzu smiled. "This may not work, but we want to get started planning as soon as possible."

"Why?" Shiena asked, a glass of milk in her hand. "Going first is a disadvantage, isn't it?"

To their surprise, it was Kouko who answered. "Disadvantages are just obstacles to be maneuvered around," she answered. "There are also advantages to going first."

"Yes," Suzu replied. It was so nice to be on the same page. "Namely, the others have no clue what to expect. Going first means you get free reign."

"I get it," Shiena said. "Whatever we do, the target will be less prepared for it."

Their classmates began to file out of the cafeteria one by one, signifiying that it was time to go.

"All right," Kouko said, discarding most of her food in the trash can. "We'll meet later today."

Suzu could tell that her roommate was not looking forward to it. She tried not to think about her first day at the academy, where Kouko had cried herself to sleep. She felt like a bad person for listening in on it, but she couldn't help being curious.

Somehow she just knew that they had both gone through something similar.

On the way to class, Suzu tugged on Shiena's sleeve. "Shiena-chan? I just remembered something I wanted to ask."

"Hm?" Shiena turned around, her bookbag slung over her shoulder. "Yeah?"

"What happened when you went to stop Azuma and Takechi-san last night?"

The brunette shivered. "I'll tell you in the afternoon. It's not much, but I'd rather say it behind closed doors." She made sure no one else other than Kouko was listening. "Also, before we start our meeting, would you mind if I got rid of those security cameras?"

"Sure, if you want to." Suzu patted her shoulder. "Is it really that important? If we're being watched constantly and no one's stepped in yet, I think they're just observing."

"I know. I just… don't like having a camera on me."

Kouko had mentioned to her that she thought Shiena might have been bullied. Since she was part of Collective Dismissal, it made sense. Suzu hoped Shiena would trust them enough to reveal that sort of info.

Oh well. There was no way to know until it happened. She walked on, kicking her nightmares off to the side to make way for the matter at hand.

The game was beginning.

**Isuke**

The first thing that happened in class that day was unexpected. Mizorogi walked in with a cardboard box full of something. Unless it was full of free money, Isuke was perfectly content to sleep through its introduction.

Most people needed to pay attention in class. In order to get a job, they had to study hard and get into college. Isuke was plenty smart, she already had a job, and her parents, though they weren't rich, had more than enough to bail her out if the need arose.

Therefore, Isuke didn't need to study. If she had needed to, she would have. But what idiot would waste time and energy doing something they didn't need to do?

_People just don't get that about me, _she thought lazily. _I'm not irresponsible, I'm logical._

Her clothing, for example. She wore it because she knew no one with half a brain would try to make her change it. Knowing that no one would ever confront her about her style made it a lot easier to wear.

Thanks to her sudden burst of thought, she was still awake when Mizorogi began the period. "Stand. Bow."

From what Isuke could hear, maybe three or four people had actually moved. Mizorogi was completely unfazed. "Welcome to class, everyone!" he said, his voice bubbling with joy like always. "Before we get started, I have something special for you all!"

"What, do we get commemorative erasers or something?" somebody asked. Somebody else chuckled.

There was a thud at the front of the room. "Close! You get official Myojou Academy Black Class wristbands!"

That was enough to make Isuke raise her head. Sensei was dangling several rubber wristbands from his fingers. They were black with what looked like the student's numbers on them. How boring.

"Please come up to get them in number order. Azuma, you're first!"

The Brainless Wonder got up and took her wristband from sensei's hand without a word. Isuke went up next. She hated the smell of the thing. It was so… cheap.

Once she was seated, she watched the others go up in turn and occupied herself by making up rude nicknames for them. The Unfun Nun, Lolicon Bait, Fluffy Nerdface, Idiot Haruki, Grandma, Grabby Hands, The Girl Prince, Sharky McTrash, Her Royal Dryness, and Pretty Little Psycho.

She didn't bother thinking of one for Haru, because she found herself stuck on Banba. The information Sharky had given them last night seemed to imply that the assassins would need to work together to have a chance, at least at first.

_It's a good thing I was planning to work with someone from the beginning, _she thought. _Everyone else is having to change their plans, but I won't. That might give me a leg up on them. And I have pretty great legs._

She turned her attention to her wristband, which displayed her number and name in tiny red print. These were specifically for the black class, meaning they were somehow involved in the game.

Then it clicked. When an assassin made their move, there had to be a way to send the target's current location to the others. These wristbands were it.

Holding it up to the light, she caught sight of a few tiny LEDs beneath thin black plastic. They would spell out the general location.

_Not a bad idea, _she thought. But seriously, commemorative wristbands? They could've at least made it a ring or something, so she could walk around without looking dumb.

Haruki, of course, was already trying it on. To her, it was probably pretty cool. She doubted the doofus realized what it was for yet. Watching her play with it was kind of cute, though.

Ugh. Since when were stupid things cute? She turned away and laid down on her desk again. By the time Mizorogi announced what they would be doing in class that day, she had drifted off into dreamland.

She spent her day as usual, sleepwalking through class. Her body was beginning to get used to the school schedule, and she woke up for lunch all by herself. She and Haruki decided to eat on the roof, where they could get some fresh air.

After staying inside most of the week, the sky was really something. A few scattered cottonball clouds floated across the never-ending blueness, dotted with V's of tiny black dot-birds.

Beside her, Haruki had spent the last ten minutes making an earnest effort to keep her interested in a conversation.

"It was really funny," the redhead was saying, tearing into a package of bread. She had just finished a story about a little brother of hers getting into trouble. "We couldn't tell what was the compost and what was the food!"

"Mmm hmm," Isuke mumbled, chopsticks hovering over a very nice looking bento. "Your little brother sounds a bit like you."

"Really?" Haruki gasped. "I haven't gotten into trouble in a long time. When I was younger, maybe…" She paused, and her face darkened. "That's more of an insult to him, actually. He'd never kill for a living."

"Don't have pity party for yourself." Spotting the bread in Haruki's hand, she smacked it away. "And don't eat snack bread before you eat your actual food."

"Aw, c'mon. It's fine to indulge, so long as you exercise." Haruki held out the bread. "I think you're a little thin, Isuke-sama. You should have this."

Isuke's stomach lurched. "No thank you," she said sweetly, shrinking away from the horrible fluff-filled ball of sugar-crusted cookie crap. "I'd much rather eat that thing your brother made."

Haruki's eyes softened a bit. She plopped the bread beside Isuke and relaxed into the iron bars of the fence. "You were listening? I thought I was just talking at you like I always do."

Isuke always said more than she meant to around the redhead. "I can listen to something without giving a damn," she replied. "I guess if you can eat sweets and not gain weight, you might as well take advantage. Just don't come crying to me when you're an old, wrinkly blob of fat oozing out of a wheelchair."

That earned her some explosive laughter from Haruki. "So that's what's in store for me, huh?"

"Yeah, pretty much." Isuke smiled. "You'll need your little siblings to spoon-feed you creamed corn, because your teeth will be gone and you won't have the money for dentures."

"Wow…" Haruki sighed. "I've got a pretty crappy future."

Setting her bento to the side, Isuke leaned back as well. "We all get old and ugly eventually. It's the same for everyone." She pushed the snack bread toward Haruki. "Go ahead and eat it, I don't really care."

Her roommate didn't notice her offering. "If the future's gonna suck," she mumbled, "maybe this is for the best."

Isuke frowned. "What's for the best?"

"Nothing." Haruki leaned on one arm, her face just a little too close for comfort. "Let's see what you've got coming, Isuke-sama."

She moved her hands as though generating some spherical object. Her eyes narrowed, heavily concentrated on her task.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"I'm consulting my crystal ball," Haruki replied, lifting her hands out in front of her. "I used to do this for the little guys all the time. I'm starting to see your future! Get ready!"

"Don't be silly," Isuke replied. "I already know what I'm going to do in the future. I'll be an assassin at night and run a business on Mama and Papa's beach during the day."

Haruki rubbed her magic ball-thing. "Yeah, looks like it! From what I can see, you'll make a killing!"

Wincing, Isuke tried to take the crystal ball from her, then remembered that it didn't actually exist. "That was so lame," she snickered. "Maybe I'll buy you a decent joke book out of the goodness of my heart."

"The crystal ball is now peering into your heart!" Haruki leaned over and stared intently at Isuke's neck while holding her sphere in front of it. "What will be revealed?"

"That's not where my heart is, dumbass."

Her roommate grinned. "What, you want me to look there?"

Smiling back, Isuke slowly pushed her away. "No. I don't think you could handle it. Anyway, what's inside my heart?"

"Hold on… there." Haruki peered into her hands. "Your heart is full of love, but there seems to be something blocking it off."

"Me, full of love?" Laughing, Isuke wondered what her roommate saw in her. "I think you're mistaking my heart for somebody else's."

Haruki shook her head insistently, sending red curls flying to and fro. "Nope, it's your heart alright. Kinda murky, with plenty of nice things floating around. Like a good bowl of stew."

Isuke's eye twitched. "Did you just compare my heart to… stew?"

"Or, y'know, a healthy lake!" Haruki waved her hands. "A beautiful, healthy lake with all kinds of sea life." She threw out her arms. "If only the lake were allowed to become a river!"

This topic of conversation wa getting a tad annoying. "First of all," Isuke replied, "rivers run into lakes, not the other way around. Second, don't apply your own idealistic principles to somebody else's heart. It's rude."

"Well." Haruki picked up her feet and sat cross legged on the stone edge of the roof. "How would you describe your heart, Isuke-sama?"

Who ever thought about _that_? Isuke searched for some things that might describe her heart. All she could think of were very good things that she pretended to believe and very bad things she didn't want to believe.

"It's…" She shrugged. "A desert. Except there's one oasis in the middle of it where Mama and Papa are. Outside of that there's selfishness and greed and pure logic. Which is fine, because that's what human nature is."

It took a second for Haruki to respond, since she had ripped off a chunk of snack bread and was gobbling it down. "Now that we have two different versions of your heart," she said, "which one do you want to be true?"

You couldn't just… decide who you wanted to be. Isuke had been moulded into her current self a long time ago, back when she had learned about human nature the hard way.

People could go on and on about mercy and compassion, but the truth was always apparent wherever she looked. It was a dog-eat-dog world where the only way to survive was by making it to the top. And it wasn't about justice and hard work like some idiots made it seem. Survival was about being born lucky.

_I was bigger and stronger. That's why I survived, and he didn't._

"I don't really care," she finally said. "Whatever's in my heart has gotten me this far, so I don't feel the need to change it." She glared at the sweet stuff Haruki was shoving into her mouth. "Like you don't feel the need to change your eating habits."

"Oh, so now you agree with me?" Haruki laughed. "It never gets boring with you, Isuke-sama."

"You're pretty interesting too," Isuke admitted. "I guess stupid people have always been entertaining."

Haruki was about to object to that when a small silver-haired girl emerged from the stairway leading to the roof, carrying some trash in a plastic bag.

_Well, what do you know. My potential accomplice has just arrived_. Isuke smiled and waved. "Hi, Banba-chan! Wanna come chat with us?"

Banba flinched away and turned to go back down the stairs. Before she could get through, Hanabusa appeared next to her.

"What's wrong, Banba-san?" she asked, frowning at Isuke and Haruki. "Was someone rude to you?"

"All I did was say hi," Isuke grumbled, standing up. With her heels, she stood much taller than the others. "Am I not allowed to talk to her?"

Hanabusa bowed. "I apologize for assuming. Please excuse us."

The two of them started for another spot. Rather than eating, they opted for gazing out over the landscape for reasons Isuke couldn't fathom. She elbowed Haruki in the ribs.

"Ow! Yes?"

"Go ask why Banba-chan wasn't at last night's meeting."

"Why do I have to ask?"

"Because they'll think I'm scheming or something and get all pissy. Everybody likes you. Go on."

"But you _are_ scheming."

"Exactly! Now get your ass over there."

Sighing good-naturedly, Haruki went to do Isuke's bidding. Isuke had to admit, it was nice having someone who was kind and did whatever she asked. At the same time, she was angry at Haruki for letting herself get ordered around. _Why don't you stand up to me? _She thought. _Have some self respect, for god's sake._

A minute later, Haruki returned. "Something about a bright light," she said. "Banba-chan got there a little late, and there was a bright light coming from inside the warehouse, so she went back to her dorm."

"Bright light, huh?" Isuke mumbled under her breath. "Interesting."

She ate a bit more of her bento and wrapped it back up to save for later. Her stomach growled in protest, but she ignored it as she had done a million times before. Isuke never let herself get completely full. It was a habit she had learned in her old household, where being full meant that _he_ was off in a corner starving like the sniveling weakling he was.

Or, had been.

At any rate, she felt more secure knowing that she had food for later and that she could eat it whenever she wanted. Control was something she had to have, which meant she needed as much information as possible.

Hence, the need to find out about Banba's secret. Did Sumireko know it? If she did, she definitely wouldn't tell anyone else.

"Hello?" She found a hand waving in front of her face. "Earth to Isuke-sama. It's time to get back to class."

"Fine, I'm coming." She swatted Haruki's hand away with a smile. "You lead the way, Haruki-kun."

They made their way back to class with Her Royal Dryness and Psycho trailing behind. She wondered what could make Banba afraid of the light, and how she could kill with her crippling shyness. Maybe that was just a front for something far more sinister.

The other thing she thought about, to her chagrin, was her heart. Her stewy, sandy heart full of love and greed and fish.

_Don't let Idiot Haruki get to you~ _she thought in a singsong voice.

But Haruki _was_ getting to her, in a big way. Everything that came out of the goofball's mouth seemed to have some deep meaning. Like she was constantly being asked to change herself.

On the contrary, nothing she said ever got through to Haruki. Isuke knew she wasn't right about everything, but she was right about some things, god dammit! Why didn't Haruki ever listen to her?

She dreamed about that question all next period while Asshat-sensei droned on in English.

**Haru**

Tokaku-san and Otoya-chan had been very distant all day. Moreso than usual, meaning that not only did they give each other nasty looks and refuse to talk to each other (with the exception of an occasional rude comment from Otoya), they wouldn't even go near each other.

Had something happened? Tokaku and all the others had left to do something late last night. She had heard the foot traffic in the hallway and figured it was some kind of assassin-only thing. She remembered Tokaku's only words from when she had returned to their dorm that night.

"The game started. Get some sleep."

It wasn't hard to imagine Tokaku and Otoya having a fight, and it was even easier to imagine the two of them hiding it from her. Haru sighed and leaned on her elbows. Why were they both so difficult?

She looked at Tokaku to find the blue-haired girl watching her intensely. Otoya's eyes were trained on her as well. When each of them noticed the other watching, they glared at each other and glanced down at their work in a half-hearted attempt to look like they were studying.

They hadn't been nearly this bad before. Haru would have to ask them some things after class and hope she got truthful answers.

The next couple that caught her eye was Chitaru-san and Hitsugi-chan. Those two were getting closer by the minute. They went nearly everywhere together, with Hitsugi holding Chitaru's hand or arm. Chitaru took it very well, so well that Haru wondered if maybe she was the one who liked being held onto as opposed to Hitsugi-chan.

She giggled. It was cute thinking of Chitaru-san being shy or holding a teddy bear like Hitsugi-chan was today. The little girl had walked into class that morning hugging a pink teddy so adorable that Haru had asked to hold it. She remembered Hitsugi's unhappy face when Chitaru had prompted her to let go of it for even a second. It must have been pretty special to her.

_It was kind of heavy, _she thought. _But oh, so soft! _Haru had owned a stuffed animal a while back, but it had been buried in the rubble of her old home. She had wished for one many times while she had been in the hospital. Having something to hold was nice.

Class ended in its own good time, leaving all the students to entertain themselves. Most went back in groups of roommates, except for Shiena-chan, who left with Kouko and Suzu-san. Otoya and Shiena really didn't get along, even though they shared a room.

She frowned. If Tokaku didn't like someone, that was one thing. Tokaku didn't get along easily with others, meaning that Haru could take her opinion with a grain of salt. But after several days in the black class, she could see that Tokaku was not alone in her view of Otoya.

Their conversation yesterday had revealed a lot of things about the girl, both good and bad. When Otoya had grabbed her arm like that, she had truly seemed like a ruthless killer. Once she calmed down though, she went back to her normal, cheerful self.

_Back to normal and then some. _She could still feel where Otoya had kissed her surprisingly gently.

It was hard. Otoya was nice to her, and really wanted to be friends with her. That was more than Haru had gotten from anyone else in the class. Tokaku insisted the girl was only pretending to be kind, but Otoya had shown some very real emotions. Someone who was faking wouldn't have revealed that kind of anger, right?

She wanted so much to believe that Otoya was kind at heart.

The raven-haired girl herself exited the classroom and skipped over to her. "Hey, Harucchi!" She hugged Haru around the shoulders. "Have a good day so far?"

"It's been good," Haru replied, smiling and noting not for the first time that Otoya gave very warm hugs. "You asked that me at lunch, too."

Otoya shrugged. "I just wanna make sure everything's all right. If anyone gives you trouble, let me know."

That's right. Haru knew Otoya wasn't going to kill her, and she hoped Tokaku wouldn't try. There were still plenty of others to worry about, though.

"About that…" Haru lowered her voice to a whisper. "Tokaku-san said the game starts today. Is there anything I should know?"

"Yeah, some rules and stuff." Otoya watched the other students attentively, waiting for them to leave. "I'll tell you on the way to the dorms."

"Tell her what?"

Tokaku had walked up behind her, looking sour as ever. There was something else though. She looked kind of hurt.

"Tell her about the show you made last night," Otoya grinned. "And how I had to drag you out of the building."

"You didn't have to drag me anywhere," Tokaku growled. "I was voicing a concern that everyone else here with a brain cared about."

Folding her arms, Haru backed away from Otoya so it wouldn't look like she was taking sides. "I thought you two had a fight, and it looks like I was right. What were you concerned about, Tokaku-san?"

The blue haired girl took a few deep breaths. "I asked Hashiri what her relationship was with you."

"That's right!" Otoya chimed in. "She wanted to know if Nio-chan was still available."

"Do you _ever _shut up?" Tokaku gave her a light push on the shoulder. "I just wanted to know why she's so familiar with you, and why you act the way you do around her. That, and she knows more about the black class than anyone else."

Haru could feel her palms getting sweaty. The only one who knew as much as Nio was herself. And Tokaku was right; they did know each other from elsewhere.

"Well…" she started, wondering how much would be safe to reveal. "We knew each other before the class."

"I knew it!" Tokaku took a step closer. "Then, do you know anything about what she does on that tablet?"

She didn't know for sure, but she could have guessed. Unfortunately, that was venturing into the realm of secrecy.

"It's nothing like that," she sighed, casting her eyes downward. "We met at the hospital, Tokaku-san."

Tokaku's eyes drooped instantly. "Oh. So that was all?"

The hospital had not been a fun time for Haru. It was after she had lost the rest of her family. Being all alone in the world wasn't the nicest thing to have on your mind while trying to recover from grievous wounds. She had stayed there for months without much progress until she had gotten a roommate.

That roommate had been Hashiri Nio.

Otoya elbowed Tokaku. "Nice going. You made her sad."

"Then I'll leave it to you to make her even sadder." Tokaku pushed her back. "Tell her about what _you_ did last night."

Returning to reality, Haru looked at Otoya. "Did you start the fight?"

"Yeah, I guess I did." Otoya shrugged, like it was no big deal at all. "I asked her to do something reasonable, and she insulted me. So I got a little angry."

"That was a _little _angry?" Tokaku cried. "I'd love to see you when you're _really _angry, then."

Otoya giggled and smiled a bit wider than should have been possible. "No, I don't think you would."

Not knowing what was going on made these conversations so hard to follow. "Guys." She put a hand on both of their shoulders. "I want a play by play of what actually happened. No rude comments allowed." The "no rude comments" rule meant there would be about a third as much talking. Haru liked to be able to process things.

They glanced at each other. Otoya gestured toward Tokaku. "You first. You're more trustworthy than I am, anyways."

"So you'll just admit that openly?"

The raven-haired girl shrugged. "When I get angry, I don't remember much of what I do."

Nodding, Tokaku stood stiffly as though she were giving a military report. "I'll start with when she dragged me outside. I wanted her to let go, so I pulled out my knife. She threw me into a trashcan and said she wanted to team up with me. I said no, because I don't trust her, and put my weapon back."

"You knocked me down too," Otoya piped up. "You forgot that."

"Because you grabbed my hands like a creep. Anyway, she pulled some scissors out of her waistband and said she didn't actually want to team up with me."

Otoya ran around behind Haru. "I thought you'd want us to team up," she said, gripping the girl's shoulders. "But then Tokaku was all mean."

Tokaku put a hand to her chest. "Right, _I _was mean. You're the one who said I was going to end up in tiny pieces!"

"I meant you were gonna get creamed by the other assassins, stupid. That's why I wanted us to team up in the first place."

"No, I'm pretty damn sure that's not what you meant."

"Hold up!" Haru cried, exasperated. "What are you even talking about? Teaming up to do what?"

They blinked. "We, uh…" Otoya rubbed her neck. "We both agreed that we were gonna protect you from the others. Y'know, until the class is over."

Haru's face lit up like a lightbulb. "You guys…" She sighed and hugged them both, one with each arm. "You should've mentioned that first!" She could practically feel her stress evaporating. With them on her side, she'd have a much better chance of living through the class.

"You were so hyped up about graduating," Tokaku mumbled. "I didn't want you to be disappointed."

"I just didn't want you to die," Otoya laughed. "We should probably tell you the rules now."

It was hard to be mad at two people who cared about her so much. Haru let go of them reluctantly.

Far more comfortable outside someone's embrace, Tokaku closed her eyes. "Yeah, those're kind of important. The way this game is set up, the other assassins are gonna have a chance to protect you. The difference is that they'll still try to kill you in the end. In order to attack, an assassin has to send you an advance notice. Once they do that they can attack at any time for 48 hours."

"But," Otoya put a hand on her hip, "as soon as the notice goes out, we other assassins will be notified of your location. Not theirs, just yours."

How could they tell everyone where she was?

"Oh!" She held up her arm. "The wristbands."

"Bingo!" Otoya laughed. "Yours must be a tracker or something, but ours are recievers."

This was big. Haru had known about the advance notices, but not about the tracker. Having two permanent protectors and a bunch of temporary ones would make surviving much easier. On the other hand, it meant the assassins would be going all out.

The question was why. This was supposed to be a test for her primer powers. Why would they go out of their way to make things harder for the assassins?

Unless… this was also a test for them?

"Won't it be bad if the other assassins find out you aren't going to kill me?" she asked. "Won't they want to get rid of you?"

Tokaku tapped her foot. "At the moment, no. Eventually, yes. That's why I think we should keep it a secret."

That sounded like a good plan. There was no dissent from Otoya. "Chitaru-san might help too," Haru suggested. "She seems nice."

"We'll see." The blue-haired girl looked down the hallway toward the stairs, the direction Chitaru had left in minutes before. "She's got issues of her own, though."

Haru wondered what sorts of troubles a girl like Chitaru might have. Everyone here had their own story, after all. She had spent a lot of time wondering about Tokaku and Otoya, and what had happened to make them the people they were.

"There's one more thing," Otoya said. "After the fight, we saw Nio-chan talking to some lady on the big screen. She had a suit and she looked kinda old. I think she's probably important."

"An older woman…" Haru repeated. "In a suit?"

"Yep. She looked all greenish."

Her eyes widened. They had seen the chairwoman! That was definitely not supposed to happen, at least not this early in the competition. Nio was probably kicking herself right now.

"Wow," Haru gasped. "You think she might know something?"

"I think she's in charge of this whole game," Tokaku said. "They were having a conversation, but we couldn't really understand it."

Otoya laughed. "Either that, or Nio's into older women."

"That's as far as we ever need to go into that topic." Tokaku grimaced. "Now that we're done telling Ichinose about last night, we can cut ties for good."

"Sounds good." Otoya gave her a thumbs up and skipped down the hall. "I think I'll start protecting her right now!"

Haru called after her. "Otoya-chan! Where are you going?"

"She's going away from here, which is a good thing as far as I'm concerned." Tokaku's shoulders relaxed a little as soon as Otoya was out of sight. "Did you think we were going to make up after a fight like that?"

"But you're working toward the same goal!" Haru protested. "You can at least be around each other, right?"

The blue haired girl sighed. "I thought so too, but for her it's not that simple. Also, you have to see that we don't like each other."

_But I like you both… _Haru pouted and started down the hall. "If I can be friends with both of you, neither of you can be that bad. If you'd just give her a chance-"

"I don't give out infinite chances," Tokaku replied. "You're the only one who does that."

They passed by several school buildings on the way back to the dorms. The skyscraper in the center of the campus stood like a sentinel, watching everyone and everything that went on far below.

Haru wondered if the chairwoman found all of this amusing. She had been tracking the pink haired girl since her birth, though they had only met during the last few years.

She wished she could explain everything to Tokaku and Otoya. Having no one to confide in was already hard, and to have the two of them fighting on top of that… wasn't fun at all.

_I shouldn't expect it to be fun, _she thought, gazing up at the clouds and shielding her eyes from the burning sun. _This is a game of death. All I can do is try my best_.

She wanted to escape this without any of them dying. Even the ones she didn't like, she wanted them to live. If they could all be forgiven, and walk away from this place into a new life, it would be truly beautiful. That dream was all she had to believe in.

That was why she stopped Tokaku at the door to the dormitory building.

"What?" the blue haired girl asked impatiently, holding her phone. "I have to report to Kaiba."

Whenever Tokaku had to talk to Otoya, it put her on edge like this. "Instead of going straight to the dorms," she said, "I want to go somewhere beautiful. Do you know anywhere like that on campus?"

Tokaku folded her arms. "I'm not sure why you're asking now… how about the greenhouse?"

The greenhouse, though Haru was embarrassed to admit it, was a place where she thought of Otoya. Right now she wanted to focus on her other friend.

"The greenhouse is manmade," she replied. "Let's go somewhere natural."

"Jeez…isn't everything here manmade?" Tokaku slipped her phone back into her pocket. "All right, I can think of one place. Kaiba can wait."

Beaming, Haru held her arm. "Yay! Let's go!"

"I can't lead the way if you're grabbing onto me," Tokaku mumbled, shaking herself free. Haru thought she caught the tiniest bit of weakness in her voice.

After a few more minutes of walking, they had ended up in a large grass field with a baseball diamond. The grass was the deepest green Haru had ever seen, the kind that gets watered every day and graced with sunshine.

_She picked something simple, _Haru thought, rushing out into the field. _That's just the way she is._

Laughing, she twirled like a top, making the grass flare up around her. On a day like this the sun set everything aflame.

Her roommate stood in the shade of the trees bordering the field. "Is this natural enough?"

"Yeah!" Haru stopped spinning for a second to face her. "When did you find this field? We never explored this side of the campus, did we?"

Tokaku leaned against one of the trees. "Remember when we tried out the elevator? I spotted it from one of the higher floors before they made us go back down. And yesterday I came here to work out with Namatame." Plunging a hand into her bangs, she pushed them back away from her forehead. "Why did you have to pick such a hot day to come out here? We could've come tomorrow."

Haru resumed her joyous dancing. "I'm feeling down, so I want to feel happy again! You can be kind of stifling, Tokaku-san."

"I'm not stifling," Tokaku muttered, pushing away from the tree and trudging toward Haru. "I'm realistic."

"More like pessimistic!" Throwing her arms to the side, Haru bent back to bask in the glowing heat. "Feel the sun on your skin! Don't you just love the sun?"

Cautiously, Tokaku glanced up toward the small ball of fire. She immediately jerked her head downward. "It hurts my eyes."

"Don't look at it directly," Haru giggled, moving the girl's hands away from her face. "Just feel it."

"All I feel is heat."

The sun brought life to so many things, yet it also brought death. The same with water, and with human beings. Although she had witnessed and felt plenty of terrible things, Haru had also experienced times of love and prosperity. She had come to realize that no matter how bad things got, life would move on, and good would come with time.

_For someone like Tokaku, who's only known darkness, it must be difficult to feel the good side of things. Maybe even painful. _

On the contrary, maybe Haru needed to pay more attention to the dark side of things. She couldn't keep on pretending that the rivalry between Tokaku and Otoya didn't exist. As confusing as it was, not everyone could get along in the end. That wasn't a bad thing in and of itself.

"What are you thinking about?" Tokaku asked, shoving her hands in her pockets. "You haven't said anything for a while. Am I really that stifling?"

Haru smiled over her shoulder. "Yes," she answered jokingly. "Yes, you really are."

Tokaku got that hurt look in her eyes again. "I was kidding!" Haru cried. "You're not stifling, Tokaku-san."

With a sigh, Tokaku turned away from her. "It's all right. I know I'm hard to talk to, and that I don't have passion for anything. I just don't really care."

"You do too care," Haru pouted and skipped into the shade where Tokaku was. "I saw that look you had a second ago. I hurt your feelings, right?" She chuckled. "Now you'll try to tell me that you don't have feelings."

"Nope, none to speak of."

"Liar." Taking Tokaku's hand, Haru pulled her further into the field. "If you don't have any feelings, you won't feel embarrassed dancing in this empty field."

"Wait, dancing?" Tokaku yanked her hand back. "I've never danced in my life."

She looked truly afraid. "Not a couple's dance, silly," Haru said. "Dance like I was a minute ago! Twirl like a dandelion seed on the wind!"

"I know _that_," Tokaku huffed, standing stiff as a board. "I meant I've never done any dancing, ever."

Haru gasped. "Not even in your room, by yourself?"

"Who dances in their room by themselves?"

"Everyone who's not repressed!" The pink haired girl hopped around from one foot to the other. "Normally I wouldn't do it out here, but I need a little fun, and I think you need it too."

So long as no one could see, they were free to be themselves. Yesterday she had wanted to see what Otoya would act like when no one else was around. Today she planned to do the same with Tokaku. Tokaku was more difficult, because even if no other person was watching her, she watched herself constantly. It would take a lot to make her let go.

Right now more than anything, Haru needed to prove to herself that everything would be all right. If she could make someone like Azuma Tokaku dance, then anything was possible.

"I don't need anything," Tokaku said bluntly. "I can take care of myself. The one who's endangering her health is you." She frowned. "Wait, I get it. I bet Takechi would've danced with you, right?"

"I think she would've come running and tackled me," Haru admitted, laughing a little. "You're not like her at all, and that's okay with me. Also, you don't have to worry about me all the time. I'm fine!"

"Are you kidding? You eat candy for dinner and hang out with murderers."

Haru's life involved a lot of running to burn off that candy. "I hang out with murderers who have sworn to protect my life. That's a little different."

"Oh yeah?" Tokaku slowly pulled a knife from her sleeve, revealing only about an inch of the blade. "How do you know I wouldn't give you a notice and kill you right now?"

Sunlight glinted off the metal. "Because you don't have a reason," Haru said softly. "Someone like you only does things for a reason. When you can't find one, you say the whole thing is stupid." Smiling, she stepped back and flung herself into another number. "That's why you won't dance!"

The other girl returned the knife to its place. "That is true," she grunted. "Are you saying you can give me a reason?"

"Nope." Haru grabbed her hands and pulled her around in a circle. "I'm saying that you'll find your own reason if you just do it!"

She whirled the girl around several times. Tokaku stared back at her without feeling, going through the motions like a machine.

"Haven't found one," Tokaku said, her eyes pointed at the center of the circle they were tracing in the grass. "This is making my head hurt."

Haru laughed and leaned back into the spin, admiring how Tokaku kept them stable with no difficulty. "Well, you know what they say! If at first you don't succeed…"

"What?"

"Spin faster!" Haru moved her feet more quickly, shouting happily as they hurtled around each other. Her heart sped up too, thumping against her ribcage as though it wanted to get out and join the fun. "Whee!"

After an initial gasp of surprise, Tokaku stayed silent. With every spin, Haru noticed her expression change from shocked to perturbed to accepting. The only ones present to bear witness to their dance were the trees and the skyscraper sentinel, ever attentively watching.

They continued to circle each other, letting all their thoughts fly out behind them. Then the most amazing thing happened; Tokaku began to look happy. Haru laughed and squeezed her hands tighter, wishing she didn't have to let go.

_Spinning around like this, _she thought, _we're kind of like yin and yang._ Interestingly, she wasn't sure which one of them would be which.

"Have you found your reason yet?" she yelled, out of breath.

Tokaku didn't answer. Her short blue hair flew to one side and her eyes glazed over as dizziness overtook them. Haru wondered what exactly was on her mind.

Her train of thought skidded to a halt when she stepped in a small rut. Her foot twisted out from under her.

"Jeez!" Tokaku cried, catching her roughly and almost falling over herself. It was no use, because Haru grabbed on to her dress shirt and pulled them both to the ground.

They lay there in the grass for a few seconds, shocked speechless. Haru was very aware that any passerby who saw them then would think they were sharing an intimate moment.

_I should move off of her, _Haru told herself, wishing her vocal cords would work. _I really should move, right now. _

She realized her elbow was pressed into the girl's diapraghm and pulled it away to let Tokaku breathe easier. Scooting back onto her knees, she helped her sit up.

"There was a rut," She explained, gripping the girl's arms. She could feel those knives in her sleeve. They made her feel nervous and safe at the same time. "Thanks for trying to catch me."

Now she really wished she had gotten off the girl. Their faces were far too close for comfort. Tokaku sat there frozen, or rather, partially defrosted, gazing blankly at Haru with beautiful blue eyes.

"Um…" Haru couldn't think of anything she wanted to say right then. If possible, she wanted to look into those eyes forever.

Her mouth moved, and Haru finally pulled back, with red cheeks that were no fault of the sun.

"Next time," Tokaku coughed, the corners of her mouth turning up. "I think I'll just let you fall down."

The grass did provide a nice cushion. It was nice and cool, especially after they had exerted themselves in the heat. Moving off her companion's stomach, Haru rolled onto her back. The tiny blades tickled her ears. "I think I could handle that."

Beside her, Tokaku sat with one knee pulled to her chest and the other leg extended. Either her roommate wasn't used to wearing skirts, or she was just that unconcerned with appearances.

"I think I might've found my reason," the girl said.

Haru smiled. "Really? What is it?"

Jumping to her feet with ease, Tokaku offered her a hand. "Not telling."

"I should've known," the pink haired girl sighed, accepting her sweaty hand with one of her own. "What are we going to do with you, Tokaku-san?"

They left for the dorms for real that time, each resolving to return to that field in the future. Haru felt much better than she had. Not only that, her hope had also been renewed.

_I made Tokaku-san dance!_

When she looked at her roommate, she could see a ghost of the smile that had spread across her face. Now that it had finally broken through the ice, Haru was sure she could bring it back.

She just knew that everything would be all right.

**So, the way things are going, some of my characters are really deviating from the manga. Namely, Haru and Hitsugi, but especially the latter; I really can't imagine my Hitsugi saying some of her iconic lines in the manga. Is it all right with you guys that her character's different? Would love to here input on the characterization in general. Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hey there! I'm sorry I'm so slow, school just started and I have a lot less time on my hands. Then of course, there's the random things that happen over the weekend. We spent half of Sunday trying to save a baby squirrel... I hope it lives! Anyway, here's chapter 11!**

**Shiena**

"Last one," Shiena said, yanking a few wires out of a final security camera. She would study them later to see if she could hack into the surveillance system. "We should have privacy now."

Kouko sat up straight on at the foot of her bed. "Did you check for any hidden microphones?"

A pile of metal to Shiena's left answered her question. "Just a few. If there are any more, we should be able to talk quietly enough so that they won't hear."

"Good." Suzu lay at the head of Kouko's bed, leaning on her elbow. "Shall we get started?"

Pushing the pile of debris under their entertainment center, Shiena crawled over and sat on a cushion she'd pulled from a chair. "We might as well. This isn't going to be fun for any of us, is it?"

The other two frowned to show their agreement. Shiena had been dreading this meeting all day. It was embarrassing to admit she had been a victim of bullying, and it tended to make people feel awkward around her. She never knew why people had made her their target. Who knew how the mind of a bully worked? They were cowards and weaklings to be sure, but good luck trying to tell them that. In the meantime, they had deprived her of all meaningful human contact by making her too wary to approach other people.

It was hard having no friends. Once a few people laughed at her, everyone joined in. Those who didn't said nothing. Her only friends were the few teachers who had time for her, and even they never took action until it was too late.

Eventually, Shiena had refused to go to school and locked herself in her room. Her hobby had always been hacking and computer science, so she devoted herself to it. Along the way she'd found a website for formerly bullied people and met a girl named Yukari.

Yukari had been the one introduce her to Collective Dismissal. She had also told her about the black class. In order to prove her worth, Shiena had resolved to win the black class game and get revenge for all of her new friends.

_I'm stronger now, _she thought, anxiously waiting for someone to speak. _That's why I can do something like this. I don't want anyone mistaking me now for the me back then._

"Since none of us want to go first," Suzu sighed, "I will. If we're going to attack first, I might as well get used to it."

Shiena snapped to attention. She had wondered about Suzu ever since their train ride on the first day of class. The girl was kind and mature, but fun too. She seemed like she belonged in a different world.

"Sorry," Suzu said, smiling in spite of herself. "I'm worried you'll laugh at me."

"Why would we laugh?" Kouko asked, poorly disguising her eagerness to hear whatever this was.

"All right." She folded her arms. "Have you heard of Highlander's syndrome?"

Because she was in the room with a braniac and a geek, they both knew exactly what it was.

"No way!" Shiena cried, pulling her cushion closer. "You have it?"

The girl chuckled ruefully. "It's not as exciting as you think it is."

Kouko was still processing what she had just learned. "That's an incredibly rare disease," she said. "The chances of having it are one in millions."

Suzu nodded. "Well, I beat the odds."

"How old are you, then?" Shiena blurted out.

"It's not polite to ask a woman her age," Suzu joked. There was a wistful look in her golden eyes. "I don't even remember anymore."

No wonder Suzu had seemed out of place. She had grown up years ago, in an era none of them had ever experienced.

"My wish is to be able to age normally," she finished. "I don't want to watch the world go by anymore. I want to go right along with it."

Shiena wondered how many memories she had, how many people she had lost to the years. It was a sad thought.

"Wow…" she breathed. "If you're brave enough to say that, I guess I can go ahead and go next."

Suzu tucked some hair behind her ear. "It's not really bravery. I've had a lot of time to think about my values, and secrecy isn't one of them." She chuckled. "Isn't it amazing how something you've been dreading for hours can be overwith in seconds?"

Since Shiena had already agreed to go next, there was no backing out of it now. She looked both her new friends in the face and swallowed down her fear. They would understand.

"I've been bullied since I was a little kid," she said quietly. "People spread rumors about me, took pictures… I got beat up a few times."

The blue-haired girl lowered her head. "We thought that might be the case."

"What? How did you know?" Shiena cried in disbelief. "Do I look like that much of a target?"

It was Kouko who answered. "You said you ate in class with teachers, so unless you were in a student-teacher relationship, you must have not liked the other children."

"More importantly," Suzu added. "You said you were a member of Collective Dismissal."

Shiena sat there, baffled. "When did I say that?" Then she groaned. "Oh… on the train, right?"

"Yep." Smiling apologetically, Suzu began folding herself into some yoga position. "Though, I didn't tell Kouko-san that part."

"Actually, you just told me," Kouko pointed out.

How embarrassing. Suzu's secret had been exciting and different; Shiena's hadn't been a secret at all, apparently. "You two should be a detective team," she grumbled. "I'll bet you know all sorts of weird things about me."

"Hmm… aside from what you've already told us?"

"For all I know, I could've told you about a crush I had in second grade…"

"Let's not get off track," Kouko interrupted, looking decidedly uncomfortable with this form of small talk. "We still don't know Kenmochi-san's wish."

Oh yes, the wish. Shiena hoped it wouldn't go over too badly. "The idea was that I'd let the members of my group decide my wish, and we'd all get revenge on the ones who hurt us," she admitted. "I sound so petty when I say it that way."

Kouko's frown intensified (she was always frowning, after all). "Hardly. People who do bad things need to pay for their crimes. If they won't do it themselves, then other measures must be taken."

Shiena wondered for the tenth time if Kouko might be religious. Her views on life and her Spartan work ethic certainly indicated it.

"Honestly, I just want them to feel like I did," she grumbled, rubbing her forehead. "Once they experience my pain, they'll think twice before putting someone else through it."

Suzu responded from her half-lotus position. "It doesn't seem like that worked on you, Shiena-chan."

"That's different!" Shiena cried. "I haven't done anything wrong!"

"I'm not saying you have," Suzu said quickly. "But you might be about to do something you'll regret."

Of course Shiena had thought about that… even after her initial yes to Yukari, it had taken her weeks to build up the nerve to try and kill someone. When she had received her gun from a contact in their neighborhood, it had taken all of her courage not to drop the thing. The truth was, she hated guns.

_No one should have the power to end someone's life in a second, _she thought, fidgeting with the seam of her cushion.

Yet here she was, in possession of that very power. Last night she had tasted it for the very first time.

Its bitterness lingered in her throat.

Kouko was the first one to speak again. "I'm sorry, Shutou-san," she said in a low voice, "but neither you nor I have the right to say that to her."

"You're right." Suzu eyed Shiena with a hint of sadness. "Sorry, Shiena-chan."

The brunette sighed. "It's all right. This is a really hard decision for me. I made up my mind to come here and stand up for myself, but after last night…"

The other two perked up immediately. "What_ did_ happen last night?"

She clenched the covering of the cushion in her fingers. "I got my first taste of your world," she said. "I put a gun to someone's head."

Their eyes widened at that. Kouko leaned forward. "You… wait, which one of them?"

"Takechi-san."

Suzu chuckled nervously. "I don't know if I'd have the guts to do that. Did she hurt you?"

"No, because I got lucky. If there hadn't been something to distract her, I don't know what she would've done. More importantly," Shiena felt a familiar lump in her throat. "I don't know whether I could have pulled the trigger."

"That sort of thing takes practice," Kouko replied, her tone sympathetic. "It's hard to kill someone on purpose."

Shiena cocked her head. "As opposed to on accident?"

The black-haired girl visibly stiffened at that. "Accidents happen. That's all there is to them."

"Kouko-san, you'll hurt your jaw if you clench it that tightly." Suzu bent toward her and patted her hand. "Relax a little."

Taking a deep breath, her roommate relaxed as best she could, which meant a very slight curve in her spine and one fewer lines on her brow.

"I'm afraid of her," Shiena whispered. "Of Takechi-san, I mean. I can act strong when she talks to me, but I'm really terrified."

The other two had sensed that this was serious. Suzu unfolded her origami legs and lowered herself to the floor beside the brunette. "What do you think she's going to do to you?"

"Like I said, I don't _know _what she'd do to me. Sometimes she's kind and cuddly, sometimes she's nasty, and sometimes she has these outbursts." Shiena shuddered. "She flips out in her sleep. Last night was better, though."

Suzu and Kouko both tried to think of the right thing to say. As is always the case when everyone is trying to think of the right thing to say, no one said anything for a while. The silence settled over Shiena like a wet blanket.

Finally, Suzu spoke cautiously. "I'll tell you that she's no stranger when it comes to killing people."

"You know about her?" Shiena practically leapt forward. "What do you know?"

"The details aren't really important." Suzu caught her by the shoulders and managed a smile. "She's a neurotic psychopath who kills for fun."

Perfect. No worse than Shiena had expected, but still! "Why do I have to share a room with her?" she groaned, sitting back down and hugging her knees to her chest. "She's probably mad at me too!"

The other two girls glanced at each other.

"We'd let you stay in our dorm," Suzu offered. "Kouko-san's the dormitory rep, so she can lie about where you are."

Kouko winced. "I'd rather not…"

"Please?" Shiena clasped her hands together. "I can barely sleep in there."

Suzu joined in too, resting her elbows on Kouko's lap while holding her hands together in prayer. "Please, Kouko-san?"

It didn't take a genius to see that Suzu's pleas had far more of an effect on the girl. "All right, fine," she sighed. "But where are you going to sleep in here?"

"We can set up some blankets and a mattress on the floor," Suzu suggested. "I found some in our closet. Or I could sleep in Kouko-san's bed, to make things easier."

Said roommate suddenly needed to clear her throat. "I think the first option is preferable."

Folding her arms, Suzu climbed back onto the bed to continue her yoga. "I don't snore or anything. I just want Shiena-chan to have a comfy bed instead of a lumpy mattress on the floor."

"In that case, I can sleep on the floor and Kenmochi-san can have my bed." Kouko simply would not relent. It was kind of funny to watch.

It fell upon Shiena to end the debate. "I'd feel like I was intruding if I took one of your beds," she said. "The floor is fine for me. Thank you so much."

Maybe with Takechi out of the way, she wouldn't be so afraid of going after the target.

"Now that that's settled," Suzu said, "Kouko-san is last."

The black-haired girl said nothing, just surveyed them from under her perfectly straightened bangs. Her visage was struggling to portray whatever was going on in her brain.

No one had expected Kouko to be very open about herself. As a result, Shiena had looked forward to her confession the most. One had to work to be as hard to read as Kaminaga Kouko.

"I want to quit being an assassin," the girl said frankly. "That's all."

Leave it to Kouko to reveal the absolute minimum required. "We told you about our reasons," Shiena replied, a little hurt. "We're not going to think any less of you for giving us some context."

"If she doesn't want to say anything, that's her choice." Suzu smiled sadly. "There are plenty of things we left out too, right?"

"I guess… wasn't the point of this to confide in each other?"

"You chose to tell us about your past. She has her own reasons for keeping it to herself."

Great, they both knew what was going on, and Shiena was the only one without a clue. "So you get to know, and I don't?"

"I haven't told Shutou-san anything more than I told you," Kouko said quietly, refusing eye contact with either of them. "Trust isn't the issue."

Since she was outnumbered, Shiena decided to drop it. "As long as you trust me, I guess it's fine," she sighed. "The real question is how we're going to combine all three of these wishes."

"Hmm…" Suzu put her hand to her chin. "I want to age normally, Shiena-chan wants to get revenge on her bullies, and Kouko-san wants to quit being an assassin."

Kouko reached for the dorm rep clipboard, which she'd left near the foot of the bed. "Whatever our wish is, it will be complicated. I'll write it down."

"Do you need a pen?"

"No, I always carry two."

Suzu laughed. "Of course you do."

Shiena sat cross-legged, like she always did when she needed to think hard. "We'll have to make it into a scenario rather than a single wish."

"A scenario?" Suzu asked. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well, y'know, a scenario of what we want things to be like." Gesturing above her head, she tried to draw her jumbled thoughts in the air. "Like, I wish I were a wealthy merchant living in a castle where Kouko-san and her scientist team built me an army of robots."

The laughing that ensued was kind laughter, much to her relief. She swore she saw a tear in Suzu's eye, though it was probably her imagination. "Would you ever wish for that?"

"Maybe," Shiena shrugged. "The castle, at least. But you get what I'm saying."

"I do. In fact, I think you're onto something. A scientist team is just what I'd need to be able to age." She poked Kouko's foot. "You're a good student, right Kouko-san?"

"Of course," the girl replied, her foot twitching and moving an inch further. "You actually want me to lead a team of scientists?"

Shiena rested her elbows on her knees. "Not lead, necessarily…"

Kouko's expression darkened.

"Or you could lead it, if you wanted to!" she added quickly. "Either way, in order to keep you a happy scientist, you'd have to quit being an assassin, and they'd have to protect your decision."

"Interesting. How would you get your wish, then?"

"Right," Suzu said. "Just how many people do you intend to get back at?"

Her initial thought had been "everyone". Getting Myoujo Academy to deal with whoever her group wanted them to had been her goal. That way they could all be safe for ever. She and Yukari and all of her friends could go to school again and live without fear.

"I was planning on getting the ones who hurt my friends," she answered, "but I can narrow it down if we need to."

"That's helpful." Suzu poked Kouko's foot again, despite her effort to move away. "Kouko-san, I'm going to assume that you have an organization that's preventing you from leading a normal life. Am I right?"

"Yes," Kouko grimaced. Whether she was upset over the organization or the foot-poking, Shiena couldn't tell. "That's the problem."

"In that case, we can ask the Academy to eradicate both the bullies and your organization. That would take care of you and Shiena-chan."

"But it leaves you out," Shiena finished. "Maybe we should just ask for money, and handle the organization ourselves."

Kouko shook her head. "What matters in Shutou-san's case isn't money, it's connections. Only Myoujo would know the people who could help her."

Shiena pointed at herself and the other girl. "In our cases though, we could make due with just some good hitmen. We can use people to get us out of our bad situations."

"Then all we need to wish for are the world's top genetecists and assassins," Suzu said with a grin. "A wish that simple might just work."

"Shutou-san," Kouko sighed, exasperated. "Why do you insist on poking my foot over and over again?"

The wandering finger had struck yet again. Its owner held no remorse whatsoever. "You have elegant feet," Suzu replied. "And your tights feel really cool."

"Please stop. It makes me uncomfortable."

The brunette chuckled. "Does everything make you uncomfortable, Kouko-san?"

"I'm sorry," Suzu apologized. Unlike the last time, her face showed no signs of feeling sorry. She just looked gleefully amused.

"Anyway, it's settled!" Shiena stood up and put her hands on her hips. "We'll all wish for the same thing."

Kouko nodded and set aside the clipboard she'd been taking notes with. "Now we just need to figure out how to coordinate an attack with three people. More importantly, how to use that advantage to the fullest."

Three people meant they had a lot of options and a lot of organizing to do. "I think we should meet back here every day after school," Shiena suggested.

Stretching out her arms, Suzu slid off the bed she was sitting on. "Sure. Kouko-san and I will set up a place for you to sleep, so come by around nine."

The three of them made their way to the door and said their goodbyes for the day. They would be seeing a lot of each other over the next few weeks, so Shiena hoped they would keep getting along as well as they were.

If they even had that long.

"Before I go," she said, "I want to apologize to Kouko-san. I don't want to pressure you into revealing something you're not comfortable with."

To her surprise, Kouko smiled a little. "Thank you. Have a good night."

"You too." Shiena exited through the door Suzu held open for her. "See you later."

Once she was out in the hallway, her heart started beating like crazy. She was actually going to help plan and carry out an attack! With her… friends? Did she get to call them her friends?

She thought about her two acquaintances. Suzu was wise, kind, and creative with a slightly distracting humorous side. She had difficulty sticking to one goal or topic and liked to mould rules to her choosing.

Kouko, on the other hand, was stoic and showed little emotion. She had a great analytical mind though, and she did listen to others' advice, as evidenced by her deciding to talk with Suzu.

Shiena gazed up at the spotless ceiling of the dormitory hall. _Do I really have friends?_

"Well, well, if it isn't Shiena-chan!"

Her moment of happiness was shattered. She steeled herself and turned to face Takechi. "Aren't I allowed to get a moment's peace without you jumping in and ruining it?"

The raven-haired girl giggled. "Nope." She pointed at Suzu and Kouko's door. "What was going on in there?"

"None of your business."

"Oh… Group orgy?"

"Oh my god, Takechi-san," Shiena groaned, banging her head against the wall in the hopes that Takechi's words would be erased from her memory. "I was chatting with some friends."

Takechi was positively giddy. "Sounds fun. Let's go back to our dorm."

It was better not to argue with a girl who, according to Suzu, was a neurotic sadist. At least, she assumed as much. Takechi certainly understood other people's emotions, which meant she wasn't a sociopath.

"Fine," she sighed, pushing her a little to the side and walking stiffly down the hall to their own door. Takechi trailed behind her.

Shiena stepped into the room first, glancing back cautiously every few seconds. She watched Takechi's every move, from the way she silently closed their door to the subtle movement of her mouth. She was reaching forward ever so slightly.

The brunette gasped and ducked the first arm, but not the second one. Takechi grabbed her shoulder and shoved her into a wall, knocking the wind out of her as hard plaster slammed into her back.

"Ah!" she gasped, squeezing her eyes shut to ignore the pain of being ground into a wall by the shoulders. "What are you-!"

"Listen, Shiena-chan," Takechi whispered, twisting her deltoids and sending jolts of pain down her arms. "If you care about staying alive, that advance notice of yours is gonna stay undelivered for good."

"Let go of me!" Shiena struggled in vain. "I can scream for help!"

"I know you were planning in there with your friends," her roommate continued, admiring the anguish on the girl's face. "You're not going to be able to kill Harucchi. Someone as smart as you must've figured that out."

This was awful. If Shiena kept her eyes shut, she'd end up crying. If she opened them, she'd have to see Takechi's face. "I have a gun…" she whimpered.

"A gun you can't even hold right? Real scary."

The pressure left her shoulders, and she fell to the floor. All of the humiliation she'd endured for years came flooding back.

"What do you want?" she hissed, wiping her eyes and getting slowly to her feet. Her shoulders were killing her.

Takechi seemed to pity her current state. She folded her arms and grinned. "I'm saying that if you want to stay safe, you need to leave. The second you pull out that notice…" She made a slashing motion across her throat.

"Quit acting like you care about my well being," Shiena croaked. "You just want to kill her before me."

The cackle she got in response offered a sharp contrast to Suzu and Kouko's laughter. "You've got it ass backwards. I don't want her to die at all. I want her to be happy."

"You…" Shiena's eyes narrowed. "What?"

The raven-haired girl hugged her tightly, making her forget her pain for a split second before she remembered whose arms were around her.

Takechi twirled her braid. "I want you to be happy too, see?"

Gritting her teeth, Shiena shoved her away as hard as her aching arms could manage. "Forget it. I'm not staying in this room with you."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm going to stay in Suzu and Kouko-san's room from now on." she hurried to the door. "If you want to hurt someone, you'll have to hurt yourself."

"Aw…" Takechi grumbled, frowning. "You were a real cutie, too."

"If you really thought that, you wouldn't have been such a jerk," the brunette replied. "Now let me through."

Her roommate giggled. "Not without a parting gift for the little meddler."

Only now did Shiena remember that Takechi might still be mad at her about last night. She wouldn't be caught off guard this time. Reaching into her bag, she slid her hand securely around the grip of her handgun.

"Since I won't see you for a while, I wanna give you something to remember me by, 'kay?" Takechi drew out the same pair of scissors she'd used the night before. "Rabbits are so cute, y'know? It makes me want to cut their ears."

The door opened abruptly. Because Takechi was blocking it, Shiena couldn't see who had barged in.

"Takechi," Kirigaya sighed, "put away the god damn scissors."

"Graaah!" Takechi turned around and threw out her arms, nearly putting Shiena's eye out in the process. "Is this gonna be a thing now, where I get interrupted every fucking time I wanna slice somebody?"

"If you're going to keep being an ignorant dumbass about where and when you do it, then yes, it's gonna be a thing. Now keep it down." Kirigaya frowned. "Wait, is there someone behind you?"

Shiena peeked out warily at Kirigaya, who stood outside the hallway with her teddy. "Kirigaya-san," she stammered. "You, uh… you swear a lot more than I thought you would."

Takechi burst out laughing. "Wow, pipsqueak. That was just beautiful."

The tiny girl looked like she'd swallowed a live snake. She stared up at Shiena with eyes so unlike the ones she usually wore. "Because I just saved your virginity and possibly your life," she replied sweetly, "I'd appreciate it if you didn't tell anyone about this. _Anyone_."

Shiena certainly did not plan to tell anyone, anyone what she had just witnessed. Instead she ducked under Takechi's arm and ran down the hall. She heard snippets of the two conversing before she got too far away to hear.

"I can't believe you busted yourself like that!"

"If you don't shut up, I'll bust something of yours. And keep it down!"

She didn't stop until she was out of the building and out of breath. Groaning, she slumped against one of the columns outside the doors. At least she was safe out here for the time being.

One thing Shiena really hated was when other people reinforced ideas she was trying her hardest to get away from. For example, the idea that she was weak. Or, more importantly, the idea that she couldn't kill the target.

_It was going to be hard enough without having to deal with Takechi, _she thought. She knew her fear of her roommate was irrational, considering that she was fine around the other girls. They would fight her too, though. Even girls like Kirigaya couldn't be trusted. Hell, she hadn't even remembered to mention that weird woman they had seen talking with Hashiri! She didn't know a thing about this place.

_I'm not like them. I'm able to act brave and tough, but in the end it doesn't matter. I'm weak, emotional, and hesitant where it counts._

Takechi reminded her of everything she hated about herself.

She sensed someone near her. When she looked up she saw a tall girl with red hair and an unbuttoned black jacket.

"Are you all right, Kenmochi-san?" Namatame asked.

Shiena hoped she wasn't blushing at all. "I'm fine," she answered, standing up straighter to prove it. "Just… had an argument with my roommate."

The other girl frowned. "I know what you mean. On the first day of class I caught her bullying Kirigaya. I'm sorry you have to be her roommate."

Bullying her, huh? Shiena suspected that might've been another misunderstanding. "It's okay," she she said, tugging at her braid. "I'm going to stay in a different dormitory from now on."

"Oh." Namatame looked surprised. "I didn't think that was allowed."

"Well, it isn't exactly…" Shiena laughed nervously.

"I won't tell anyone," Namatame assured her. "It's more important that you stay safe.

She was definitely blushing this time. "Thanks," Shiena replied. "For caring about me."

Her companion smiled. "It isn't difficult. You're a good person, Kenmochi-san. While everyone else leaves class, you stay to help clean up." She rubbed the back of her collar. "That's more than I do."

Shiena didn't want to just say "thank you" over and over. While she searched for what to say, Namatame stepped back and waved.

"I'll see you in class tomorrow, Kenmochi-san."

Before she could stop herself, Shiena called out. "Wait! Are you busy with anything right now?"

If Kirigaya was talking with Takechi, she might just have a chance…

"No, I'm not." Namatame turned around. "Did you want to keep talking?"

If her heart had been beating fast before, now it was pounding like a jackhammer. She nodded. "If you wouldn't mind!"

To her great happiness, Namatame walked back toward her, still smiling. It was easy to imagine her as both a gallant knight and a dazzling princess. She really was amazing.

_If I can ask someone like that to walk with me, _Shiena thought, _maybe I'm not quite as much of a coward as I thought._

As she walked around campus with Namatame Chitaru, she hoped that courage would last.

**Shinya**

Shinya liked to be vocal. She liked to do things, and if anybody happened to be standing too close, they'd learn their lesson the very hard way.

So for someone like her, being trapped behind the scenes was a real drag. Mahiru was doing everything within her power to keep her from coming out. It didn't take a genius to see why, which was good, because Shinya was anything but.

"She's embarrassed by me," the silver-haired girl mumbled, settling inbetween the layers of their subconscious. "Now that she's got Sumireko, she doesn't want me ta screw it up."

Lately, Mahiru had had very little faith in her. They'd been arguing more than ever, all over the same topic. Mahiru wanted to keep on killing, and Shinya didn't. Simple as that.

Why couldn't Mahiru see that she was concerned about her? Her paranoia made her so hard to talk to already, and now she hardly ever spoke inside their head. When she did, it was all about "Hanabusa-san".

Shinya had hoped that getting a friend would give Mahiru more confidence in the world. Instead her other self was applying her shyness to her new friendship.

Since there wasn't much to do in the subconscious, she decided to peer out of the eyes. They were in their dorm. It was fairly dark, the source of light being the lamp on their nightstand, which cast a pleasant yellow glow over the beds. They sat on their own bed, and Sumireko sat on the other.

_"__Hey, Mahiru,"_ she asked. _"What time is it?"_

"_Around seven", _Mahiru replied hastily, laying down and pulling the covers up to their chin.

In order to keep Shinya from getting out, Mahiru had been going to bed extra early, before it got dark outside. That was the real reason why Mahiru hadn't attended the orientation meeting. She'd asked Sumireko to cover for her, knowing her roommate wouldn't question such behavior from a shrinking violet.

It was real annoying, getting all excited for nighttime and then remembering that she'd still be trapped.

She folded her arms. _"This really isn't fair, y'know."_

They rolled away from the light, pulling the covers over their head. _"I'm sorry," _Mahiru answered quietly. _"I… don't want you to offend her."_

Ordinarily Shinya would've congratulated her on not stuttering, but right then she was too offended herself. _"Am I really that embarrassing?" _The eyes closed, leaving her in darkness. Mahiru's ghostly white form appeared in front of her, nervously clutching her arm.

_"__I don't want her to hate us," _Mahiru mumbled. _"I-I want her kindness to last as long as possible."_

_"__I'm real glad ya made friends, Mahiru." _Shinya put a hand on her other self's shoulder. _"Ya did a great job. But can'tcha see that I don't like bein' stuck in here all the time? I wanted friends too."_

_ "__She just… doesn't seem like your type of person."_

_ "__Oh yeah? This 'lady' yer talkin' about's a killer just like everybody else here. She's way tougher than she lets on."_

The two of them stood facing each other, neither willing to yield. Sighing, Mahiru laid down on her side to sleep. Not knowing what else to do, Shinya followed suit.

_"__You're not the only one who likes Sumireko,"_ she grumbled. _"I wanna meet her too."_

Eventually she calmed down enough to close her eyes. Normally she slept in here while it was light, which made her restless during the latter part of the day. The night wore on and on, and her annoyance with Mahiru continued to grow.

_I wouldn't betray you, _she thought, holding onto her other self for warmth. Their mind could be a very cold place. _Why can't you just see that?_

At some point she must have fallen asleep, because she woke up in a sweat with cameras flashing in her eyes.

_Just a dream… _She put a hand on her chest to calm her heart. Mahiru wasn't the only one who was still afraid of that man and his camera.

Blinking, she rubbed her forehead and crawled out of bed. She really needed to use the bathroom.

Wait… bed? Bathroom? She gasped. She had control of the body again!

She tried to tiptoe quietly to the bathroom, but she was not used to treading lightly. It seemed like the floor took joy in creaking with every step. She didn't want her first conversation with Sumireko to happen by waking her up in the middle of the night.

Once she had done her business, she washed her hands super extra quietly and inched out of the bathroom…

…to find herself face to face with Sumireko.

"Ah!" she cried, flailing out her arms. "Ya scared me."

She could barely make out her roommate's pale face in the dark. Her long hair, normally perfectly straightened, was something of a mess. The blue nightgown she wore was pretty but wrinkled. Shinya kind of liked her better this way.

"S-sorry," Sumireko apologized. "I just wanted to make sure you were all right, Banba-san."

"Oh, uh…" Shinya grinned. "S'fine, don't worry about it. Thanks, though."

Her roommate's eyebrows lifted. "You're… welcome. Are you sure you're all right?"

Dang, did she really sound that different from Mahiru? "Yep!" she replied. "I was just usin' the john. The soap in there's really nice."

Sumireko looked so completely baffled that Shinya almost laughed. Since she was angry at Mahiru right now, she decided it was okay to be herself. Her significant other was about to see that keeping a wild girl in a cage was never a good idea.

"I see," Sumireko coughed. "I hadn't noticed the soap. I'll take note of it next time."

Yawning, she stumbled back over to her bed. "If you'll excuse me, I think I'll go back to bed now."

Shinya wasn't about to let her go that easy. She followed the girl and plopped down on the foot of her bed. "You think this's a dream, right?"

The response came from halfway under the covers. "I was beginning to think so," Sumireko admitted, peeking out. "You speak quite differently from the Banba-san I know."

"Guess I am a little rude, huh?" Shinya laughed. "Hope ya don't take any offense. Cuz I don't mean any."

Sumireko didn't react negatively, so Shinya gave herself a point in her own head. Even if it was just for five minutes, she wanted a conversation with another human being. When you knew someone, you wanted them to know you too.

The girl chuckled. "I don't take offense, if you don't mean any. It doesn't seem like you can help it." She sat forward in bed. "Who are you supposed to be, then? You certainly aren't Banba-san."

"Banba Shinya, at'cher service," the silver-haired girl said with a wink. "In the day I'm Mahiru, but at night I'm me."

"If you weren't you, who would you be?"

"Um," Shinya shrugged. "I'm guessin' I'd be somebody else."

She really liked Sumireko's laugh. Everybody acted more casual when they were tired, and her roommate was no exception. If Mahiru could see this side of her friend, maybe she'd let Shinya come out more often.

Her roommate laid back down, her head sinking into a pillow. "This is nice," she breathed. "My dreams aren't usually amusing."

"I can relate to that!" Shinya threw up her arms and fell back into the puffy mattress with a thump. "What're they usually like, then?"

Sumireko closed her eyes. "I only ever have nightmares."

A lot of people would've stopped prying right then, to keep the conversation from being awkward or painful. Shinya had stopped worrying about those things a long time ago. She had lived side by side with Mahiru; awkwardness and pain were her entire life.

"Gotcha," she said from the other side of the bed. "I get those too. More like 'night terrors', really." She frowned at the featureless ceiling. "Just woke up from one of 'em."

No reply. She kept on looking at the ceiling. If she stared at anything for long enough, she began to see things in it. Clouds of nothingness became swirling pools of activity. Just like herself.

She wondered if she'd be able to see herself in Sumireko too.

"So did I… I didn't really get up to check on Banba-san."

Shinya rolled her head onto its side, letting the pillow support her. "I'll tell ya mine if you tell me yours."

"I don't know if that's good idea," Sumireko whispered, gripping the comforter. Shinya could feel the tension in the cloth from a foot away. Actually, it was stretching a lot more than it should have.

She winced as a loud rip split the silence between them. Sumireko gasped and released the comforter.

"Wonderful," she groaned, pressing both hands to her head. "How am I going to explain _that_?"

The silver-haired girl would also have liked an explanation. First the burning tea incident, and now this? Sumireko was freakishly strong.

Also just like herself.

"It'll be fine," she said, smiling. "Just say one'a the maids did it or somethin'. In the meantime, I wanna hear about'cher dream."

Sumireko rolled over and looked her. She wasn't happy, but she wasn't mad either. Her gaze was piercing, like she was testing her roommate.

_Her eyes are real pretty, _Shinya thought, staring back calmly with her own swirly violet orbs. _So's her hair. I guess her everything is pretty._

The girl swallowed. "All right. I'll tell you the gist of it, but only because I know you aren't real. I hope you'll understand."

Shinya grinned. "Figures. If I'm not real, how come yer bein' so polite to me?"

Breaking their eye contact, Sumireko partially hid her face in her pillow. "I think you deserve that much for caring about me."

"'Course I care." Shinya tilted her head back and closed her eyes. "When we have those kinds'a dreams, we can't get back t'sleep, right? S'no fun stayin' up all night by yerself."

A small nod from Sumireko. The voice that came from the pillow was muffled, but discernable.

"I've had people after my life for a while," she whispered. "There have been times when they've nearly killed me. I resolved to get stronger, so I would never have to worry about them again."

Mahiru had created Shinya for a similar purpose. That need to feel safe was all too familiar.

"I can never forget, though." Sumireko touched her own shoulder. "Once you've felt pain in real life, you can feel it in a dream. I see them standing over me, I hear them talking, I smell blood… only in my dream, no one comes to save me."

That description brought back images from Shinya's own nightmares. "That's rough, ain't it?" she grumbled.

"I know it's irrational to still worry about it!" Her roommate grabbed the sheet again. "I'm plenty strong now! I could tear them all to pieces if I wanted to, yet I'm still afraid. Why?" She rubbed her head. "I just want it to go away."

"Woah," Shinya held up a hand. "I know yer upset, but y'don't wanna do any more property damage."

"Oh." Sumireko released the sheet, which fluttered back onto the mattress with a relieved "floof". "I suppose they wouldn't believe me if I said the maid had destroyed my bed."

Shinya nodded. "About that. How exactly can you rip a sheet apart with yer bare hands by accident?" She herself could perform those kinds of feats, but she was one of a kind, and possibly not even real. She wasn't really clear on how split personalities worked.

The question drew an uncomfortable glance from Sumireko. "Is it all right if I don't answer that?"

"Uh…" Shinya scratched her head. "Considering I asked, I kinda wanted an answer." Lifting her hands toward the ceiling, she drew circles in the little pools of darkness. "I'm not gonna think it's weird. I'm the same way. Sometimes I break stuff without even noticing."

"Hmph." Sumireko folded her arms. "I was planning to keep my strength a secret, but if you already know that bit, hiding its source may be futile…" She sighed. "Sorry… I keep forgetting that you aren't real in the first place."

She reached up for the ceiling too, spreading her fingers out as far as they could go. "Because people were after my life, I did my best to become stronger. My parents hired bodyguards to watch me, but I wanted to be able to take care of myself. You know how it is."

Actually, Shinya didn't. Most of what she did was, at its core, for Mahiru. In exchange for the chance to live half of a life and make her own friends, she did everything she did to make her other self smile.

She rarely "took care of herself". She didn't _need_ to be taken care of.

"One day, my illusion of safety was utterly destroyed." Her voice grew quieter, sucked up by the surrounding blackness. "If it weren't for a policeman in the area, I would have died like that, broken into pieces."

Broken… broken…

Like his camera lens.

Shinya's hands balled into fists. His face began to form on the ceiling, leering down at her. A few days ago, he'd come back to Mahiru in the hallway too.

_Memories like that should stay in my dreams and out of my life. _She thought, wishing she could punch his likeness into oblivion. _Out of our life._

"Are you alright?" Sumireko asked. "You look dreadful, Shinya-san."

Because she felt dreadful. "Jus' tired," Shinya mumbled, glaring at the man on the ceiling whose name she didn't even know. "Nightmare stuff. Go on."

Sumireko followed her gaze. "Rather than being paralyzed for the rest of my life, I opted to undergo some… modifications. Very expensive and highly experimental, of course. That's why… I'm strong…"

She yawned. "I'm so tired. If you want to talk to me about your dream, you'll have to be quick about it. Sorry."

The words bubbled in Shinya's throat, dying to be let out. She wanted someone else to know about her dreams.

_Yeah right._ _I just want somebody else to share my pain._

If they were going to be friends, it wasn't right to make this their first conversation. Shinya wasn't as calm as Sumireko. If she started talking about that man, she would snap. It'd happened before.

"Forget it," Shinya replied, forcing a smile onto her face. She wondered if Sumireko could even see it in the dark. "If ya wanna go back t'sleep, that's a good idea. I'll leave you alone."

She began to slide off the bed when a hand closed around her wrist. The fingers were a bit cold, and not very fleshy.

"Wait…" Sumireko whispered, pulling her back carefully. "Could you stay?"

What an unexpected question. "Y'mean right here?" Shinya's throat filled with gravel. "I thought you were feelin' better about yer dream."

Her arm was not released. "A bit," she replied, obviously embarrassed. "I don't usually have two dreams in a row like this. I wanted this one to be a happy one, that's all."

If Shinya didn't get back to her own bed, and Sumireko woke up in the morning with Mahiru in bed, she would know her dream had been real. On the other hand, that might not be so bad…

No. Sumireko had revealed stuff to Shinya that she hadn't told Mahiru. If she thought Mahiru knew that stuff, things would get awkward between them.

She placed her own hand atop her roommate's. "Sorry," she said, loosening the girl's grip, which was surprisingly light. "I gotta get back t'my own place."

It hurt to see Sumireko so disappointed. "All right," the girl replied softly.

Then, to Shinya's utter incomprehension, she put her arms around her roommate's neck and hugged her.

"Ah…" Shinya held her arms stiffly out in front of her, not sure whether she should hug back or not.

"Thank you," Sumireko whispered, laying her head on the girl's shoulder. "Thank you for listening to me. No one else ever does."

Someone like Sumireko being ignored was like… well, it shouldn't have happened. "What about Mahiru?" Shinya asked, taking the plunge and hugging her back.

"Mahiru is such a sweet girl," Sumireko sighed. "But the me she likes is a wise, calm lady who can support her. I could never show this side of myself to her. Or to anyone, for that matter."

Shinya shook her head. "You're wrong. She'll listen to you. Mahiru's quiet, so she might seem closed-mined, but she cares about you a whole lot."

Sumireko let go of her and slumped back into bed. "Okay," she murmured. "I'll think about it…"

Her face loosened until her troubled visage became a peaceful one. Her eyelids drooped, ushering in waves of calmness. Shinya felt a little calmer watching her transformation.

Touching her arm where Sumireko had held it, she recalled the distinct feel of her fingers. Far too dry and far too smooth. They didn't feel whole, either. Something had moved underneath her skin, completely separate from it.

She wondered what kind of modifications her roommate had undergone. Maybe she had fake skin, and that was why she could withstand heat. Considering her strength, it was probably something more drastic than that.

_That's somethin' else we share, then, _Shinya thought, giving Sumireko a reassuring pat on the head. _Neither of us're completely human._

She never would've thought that she could be so similar to such a rich, polite, elegant girl.

Shinya stayed with Sumireko until she fell asleep. When Sumireko woke up the next morning, she found Mahiru asleep in the other bed, unaware of the last night's conversation. She assumed it had all been a dream.

**Shinya finally appeared, yay! I really enjoyed writing her dialogue. Also, as you can probably tell, there won't be any Otoya x Shiena in this fic. They have such adorable fanart, but sadly they don't work in this case.**


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